A Series of Events
by Denebola Leo
Summary: In the wake of Ultimecia's defeat, dimensional rifts have opened up, revealing to Esthar a new civilization on the other side, wary but hopeful. But will an old foe find a new host in one of the magical beings for the sake of vengeance against an old nemesis and for the sake of continuing the legacy of Jenova? Will heroes from both worlds be able to fend off the monster?(REVISING)
1. Portals

**A/N: I'm revising this story a bit, clearing up the story a bit and making it read better. I think once I've done that I can finally get back into it. I'll write a bit in bold on every chapter I revise so you all know if it's the updated version or not.**

* * *

The little scientist fidgeted with his new creation, the clinks of buttons and switches and the sound of a machine warming up on the other side of a glass pane the only sounds echoing through the room. He watched as the machine hummed, a metal oval gate covered in wires slowly rippling a green film of energy, much like a bubble film created from a mix of soap and water. The scientist puffed out his chest proudly, the portal was finally working properly. He would need to do a few more tests to see if it was safe for travel, however. He played with the oversized frill circling his neck as he continued to watch the portal. Soon, they would go through it to visit.

The first contact with another dimension had happened a year ago, Time Compression and Ultimecia's attempted devouring of all time and space having a certain lingering effect on the world; certain dimensions had seemed to either pull closer to this one, or their barriers had simply thinned here and there. The first sign of this trouble was a Galbadian farmer who had gone missing for several days, only to return to his field in front of a search party, jabbering about a large red canyon filled with strange people and a fire tailed monster. The portal then began to lazily fade away after a few minutes, said the reports.

About four and a half months after that, this time in Esthar, a portal opened up in the city proper. It released a foreign monster into the metropolis, reaping havoc. The offending beast was exterminated by nearby soldiers after the invaded plaza was cleared; it was a strange beast unknown to any of the continents. The corpse was taken in for testing and contained foreign DNA and a strange energy substance.

Odine was sent to examine the temporal anomaly, and he was ecstatic that he could finally take a look at the strange phenomena up close. The little scientist quickly worked on the shimmering, silvery portal, scanning it and taking as many measurements as he could, even demanding his assistant put his head through despite the strong protests from the young man. The assistant saw a desolate wasteland, with what looked like some trace of civilization far in the distance, or the ruins of such. He really couldn't tell if it was inhabited or not, the frazzled assistant had said. It was all so tantalizing to Odine; a new world filled with new things to study!

Using the measurements Odine had made two machines based off the one called Junction Machine Ellone, ones that could directly communicate with this new world. Information could pass between each communicator, if only this machine would be found by sapient creatures. Creatures Odine was certain existed if his assistant was correct. He only had to wait for another portal to open up in Esthar, and he would deliver the little gift by way of an Estharian robot soldier. To his delight, he didn't have to wait much longer.

About a month afterwards, another portal was detected near the Sorceress Memorial. The little scientist hurried his gift towards it, excited at the possibility of contact with inter-dimensional beings. This could be a fresh, new research possibility if they weren't a few centuries behind them in technology. Setting the AI of the soldier one final time to make certain it wouldn't malfunction and attempt to kill any friendly creatures, he let it go through the portal. It slowly walked towards it and disappeared into the shimmering portal. Guards stayed posted in case anything hostile came through, and Odine made his way back to his labs, hoping to be able to hear or see something of interest from the machine.

He wasn't disappointed by what he saw, though he was annoyed that the president had gotten wind of his experiment and had been excitedly waiting at his lab for him. Resigning himself to the dopey man's presence, he turned on a monitor connected to the larger of the twin machines to observe the area around the robot. As the large monitor in the lab lit up, the screen showed a grey cityscape with an unusual monument in the center of what looked like a plaza's roundabout. There were what looked like humans of all things staring nervously at the robot soldier, unsure if it was friendly or about to kill them all; a blue suited soldier with a red barrette and a raised rifle was slowly approaching the soldier robot.

"Hey, Odine. Looks like your experiment is getting some attention!" the president said excitedly as he moved his long black hair behind his ear, a sheepish smile on his face. "This's so cool."

The scientist made a tsking sound before pressing a button on the machine to turn on the AI's speaking capability. "Hopefully ze don't ruin zis exchange, President Loire." They both watched as an exchange occurred with the soldier, the man slowly lowering his rifle and taking a look at the camera on the machine the robot held; a crystal blue eye searched it. A mumbled sentence came from the speaker.

"Mr. Tuesti is gonna wanna see this..."

And so, a connection was formed between Esthar and the World Regenesis Organization, the latter working on the machine given by the former to start a proper communication between dimensions. Within a week Laguna Loire was speaking to Mr. Tuesti by monitor. Laguna was excited and open while Mr. Tuesti was more reserved, and despite what was obvious trepidation on his part he began to warm to the Estharian president over time.

"Like, I know we've only known each other like a month or so, but..." Laguna swept a hand through his hair, then returned his green eyes to the monitor that held Tuesti's face. It was a strange mix of wariness and curiosity. "Could we do a meet and greet? Do some exchanges? I'm gettin' a bit old for adventuring, but I'd totally do this."

Tuesti gave a wary smile. "It's not that I wouldn't like it, it's just..." He looked down, thinking it through. His hands were behind his back.

"Look, you said you have energy problems, right? We'd be glad to give ya some energy tech so your civilization doesn't have to worry about all that," Laguna happily offered. "We can trade knowledge." He thought that would be great, learning about alien science and helping them in turn.

Tuesti hummed as he looked back up. "That would be nice, especially if it works here!" He stroked his goatee. "...Maybe it wouldn't hurt."

A voice chimed to his side, off camera; worried and very girly. "Reeve, are you like, sure about this? They could be puttin' on an act y'know!"

"I really can't act to save my life, sorry." Laguna blushed, shifting his feet awkwardly. "I mean if you wanna come here first, that's cool too. I just wanna meetcha face to face."

Reeve shook his head, smiling. "We'll be ready in a month. Your head scientist told mine how to create an artificial portal with the machine given, and it should be finished by then."

* * *

Squall frowned. "We're going _where_?" The former SeeD commander was now a member of the presidential family who kept himself busy with military excursions or guarding his father whenever he was needed in that capacity; he had left Balamb Garden shortly after Ultimecia's defeat to keep Rinoa safe, despite his strained relationship with the president. Laguna had promised her safety, and that was all Squall needed to hear, that Rinoa would be kept safe from the rest of the bitter world. He still felt bitter towards his father, but he supposed if Laguna was willing to go out of his way for him, he would go out of his way to build some semblance of a relationship with his estranged father.

"Cool, huh? Another world, with aliens that look and talk like us! I'm bringin' Odine, and your good friends as my guard! You and Rinoa, too!" Laguna was excitable as ever. All of Squall's friends? That would make a total of four, not including himself and Rinoa. Take Rinoa to a strange world?

He knew about the dimensional portals and that Odine and Laguna were contacting the civilization they found, but he never thought they would be visiting it in person. Or maybe he did, but not after a little more than a month. Squall gave Laguna a piercing look and wondered for the thousandth time if he was really his father.

"Is this even safe, Laguna? If we get through the portal alive, we're practically at their mercy, you know," Squall said, his frown deepening as he put a gloved hand to his hip.

Kiros spoke up. "We've already said as much..." Ward nodded silently next to him.

"Odine knows what he's doing, and Mr. Tuesti seems pretty cool. A little stiff, but cool," Laguna said flippantly.

 _'Damn it...'_ Squall's father blundered into things much too fast for his liking. He let out a heavy sigh. "When do we have to go?"

"Uh, tomorrow, actually. We're gonna go to a place called Edge, it's one of the major cities on that world. Mr. Tuesti said that word's gotten out to world leaders, so it's gonna be us meetin' them all." Laguna still smiled goofily.

Squall pursed his lips. He wondered if Laguna had asked this Tuesti fellow any pertinent questions. "Did Mr. Tuesti give any names? If we're going we need to memorize them."

Laguna put a finger to his lower lip and pressed gently on it. "It was Rufus Shinra, Bughe, and Godo Kisaragi." He tapped his foot. "He's not inviting every mayor and leader ever, just the bigger cheeses I guess."

The young man mulled the names over in his head. "Do they have countries they rule over?"

Laguna's eyes lit up at the question, and he actually frowned. "Well, see...Mr. Tuesti said they don't have any real countries quite like we do, except a place called Wutai. Everything is sort of like, city states that may or may not be controlled by one faction or another. It's all really strange."

"Sounds it." Squall sighed. "I better alert them, if we're going on such short notice." Squall nodded at his father, then turned around to leave the President's office. He rubbed his face with his hands, quietly groaning as he went towards the meeting room; the prospect was exciting and terrifying at the same time. What if they met something more dangerous than a sorceress? After a few minutes of walking and deep thought he entered his desired room. It was light blue with a large convex window looking over the huge city, and a large grey table sat in the middle, surrounded by multiple chairs. He took out his phone and made a group message to text the other five members of his group; for whatever reason his friends followed him to Esthar without a second thought. They said it was because they did not want to possibly go on an assignment that could pit them against each other, and a desire to protect Rinoa, too. _'A lot of loyalty...'_

He waited, tapping his fingers absently upon the sleek metal table as his other hand propped his chin up as he drifted into his thoughts. Ultimecia's Time Compression brought about dimensional anomalies, and now one of them helped set up a point of contact with an alien civilization; Laguna had said they looked and spoke like them, and Squall found it suspicious unless it was just because the dimensions were so close together that they would have such similarities. He didn't look up from the table until a loud greeting startled him, making him frown; he waved nonetheless.

"Irvine."

"You alright, man? You're more lost in thought than you usually are," the sniper chided as he crossed his arms, tipping his cowboy hat back a little.

Squall gave a mirthless chuckle. "Are you guys in for a treat..." He motioned for Irvine to take a seat, the others flooding in as he did so. Rinoa came to sit by his side, holding her hand on his knee under the table and making him blush ever so slightly. Squall looked up at his waiting friends, all staring back at him, wondering what the meeting was all about. He cleared his throat. "Right...We have an assignment tomorrow to be President Laguna's guard...And Rinoa's too, obviously." The sorceress looked up at Squall, a brow raised.

Quistis moved back some of her long blonde hair from her face and tugged at her salmon colored dress before speaking up. "Laguna _and_ Rinoa's guard? Where are we going that requires both of them to be guarded at the same time?" Quistis cocked her head. There was no way they were going to visit Galbadia. Rinoa would probably be killed.

Squall breathed in deeply. "Remember those portals that appeared on occasion after Ultimecia's defeat?" The others nodded, their faces frozen and wide eyed as they sensed where their leader was going. "Well, Odine made contact with a civilization on the other side of one of them. We're going to make a little visit."

"Wait wait wait wait. Wait." Selphie, the little brunette wearing a bright yellow dress spoke up, green eyes showing a barely contained explosion of excitement. "You're telling us...That we're gonna go to another dimension to talk to...aliens, and see Hyne knows what?"

Squall nodded. "That's the plan."

"That's so...Cool!" she squeaked happily. "I can't wait, aliens! What do they look like? Are they like, slimy, tentacled freaky things?!"

Squall frowned, and Rinoa squeezed his arm and let out a disapproving sound. "I haven't seen them yet...But, Laguna said they're a lot like us, it seems."

Zell scratched the top of his blond haired scalp. "What if it's a trick, they could be a buncha shape-shifters!"

"Maybe." Squall shrugged. _'They could be having this exact same conversation...'_

"I wonder if they have sorceresses, too..." Rinoa murmured. Squall gave another shrug, unsure.

"All I know is we're departing tomorrow. So please, get prepared now and get a good night's rest. It's going to be an interesting day..." Squall lifted himself up, the rest doing the same while chatting to each other about their new duty as they left. Rinoa hummed as she walked with her knight, holding his hand.

"This seems...kinda scary."

Squall nodded as they went down the hall to their room. "I'll be there to protect you."

"I know, it's just...sudden. He could have given us more warning." Rinoa sighed as they stopped at the door.

"Just like him to do that. Remember the last mission I had? I was given a day to prepare for it, too." He entered his room with the sorceress, preparing for the anxious day tomorrow.

* * *

"D'you really think this is a good idea, Reeve?" Yuffie asked, swinging her legs about on the chair she sat upon with a nervous glint in her eyes. "What if we're opening the Planet to a world full of Jenovas?"

Reeve hummed at the young woman's query. "I'd think they would have made a move already, to be completely honest. After all, Nanaki reported that one of them already came through a portal for a number of days in Cosmo Canyon, and nothing bad happened." He shrugged, then paced his office a bit, leather shoes clomping on the hard, white surface. "There'll be some extra security there, just in case."

Yuffie knew what he was talking about immediately. "Oh, he's _so_ pissed at you."

"He is. But he agreed to it, regardless." Reeve had offered his friend more than enough in compensation for skipping work for a little job. "He said he would meet us in the portal room."

Before Yuffie could respond, a scientist came into the office. "It's ready, Mr. Tuesti, Lady Kisaragi. We will need your presence at the portal." The man left. Reeve and Yuffie looked at each other nervously.

"I-I guess it's time to meet them," Yuffie said warily as she got up from her seat and walked towards the door, Reeve at her side. He didn't say anything back, too focused on whatever he may have agreed to that could be a Pandora's box. They walked silently through the halls of the WRO building located within Edge, the sound of their footsteps echoing in the mostly empty space. After a few minutes they approached the portal room, and entered. Compared to the halls they had traveled, this room bustled with activity.

It was a large whitish-grey room, one side occupied by a curious device that made a thin metal arch fifteen feet high and twenty feet wide. Beneath it was a metal floor that met a ramp that led down towards the busy scientists manning machines they calibrated for the portal to activate. Reeve stood in front of the ramp with Yuffie right behind him looking this way and that way, reassured by the multitude of soldiers on either side of the room. She touched her shuriken on her back, giving her back her spunk.

A moment later and the door behind them opened up again; a man with spiky blond hair and a surly expression marring his pale face entered. He clomped towards Yuffie and Reeve, his blue eyes smoldering quietly as he came to stand next to them, his swords jangling as he walked.

"H-hey Cloud," Yuffie stammered out. He looked at her from behind knotted brows, giving him a menacing look.

"If they do anything funny, I'm killing them," he said simply.

Suddenly the portal flashed, and a rippling liquid green shimmered in the arch, and then began to churn slowly. After a few minutes it seemed to still again, and several surprised people appeared, followed by several more. All but two seemed about Yuffie's age, all looking about in amazement of varying degrees; the Yuffie noticed the one male was particularly stoic looking, a girl was clutched to his arm who wore a blue duster, with her almond eyes wide.

Reeve came forward, giving them a small bow. "Welcome, President Laguna and company. We finally meet face to face!" Despite nervous trepidation he kept a friendly face.

Laguna came to the front, casually waving and grinning like a maniac. "H-Hey! Mr. Tuesti, it's great to meetcha like this!" Reeve and Yuffie noticed several of his entourage shook their heads or sighed with a grin on their face; he must be well known for his casual attitude. Cloud stood stiffly, arms across his chest and sporting a suspicious glare, as if waiting for their friendly guises to fall away.

The others slowly made their way down the ramp behind Laguna, soaking in the sterile looking room. To them, the most interesting things in the room were the three people Laguna had walked up to; a young woman with black hair and warm brown eyes wearing a strapless blue tank top and yellow shorts with a large shuriken hanging from her back, the man known as Mr. Tuesti, who had slicked hair but for some splayed bangs and wearing a black business suit, and a menacing looking man with golden spiky hair and three swords hanging from his back, one larger than the other two. He wore nothing but black; one side had a sleeve coming out of his leather pauldron and a black apron of fabric on his hip.

"Squall...That guy doesn't look too friendly," Rinoa said in a whisper as they stopped behind Laguna. Before Squall could give a response, she felt the man's strange, angry blue eyes on her. _'Did he hear me?'_ She gulped.

Squall looked the man up and down, and was given much the same treatment back. He was only a little taller than Zell, slim, and the amount and size of the swords on his back would be considered troublesome for a beefy body builder. _'Over compensating much?'_

Reeve coughed. "I suppose introductions are in order...I'm sure you know who I am, but...I'm Reeve Tuesti, leader of the World Regenesis Organization."

Squall frowned. _'World Regenesis Organization? Did something bad happen here?'_

Reeve pointed a hand towards the young woman to his side. "This is Yuffie Kisaragi. She works closely with me in intelligence gathering." She did a little bow with a nervous smile.

"And this is..." Reeve began, but was cut short.

"Cloud Strife, delivery boy," the man said flatly.

Laguna raised his brows, still wearing a goofy smile. "'Delivery boy' must be a dangerous job if you're armed like that."

Cloud shrugged before turning his head away.

Squall squinted his eyes. _'I don't think he's here for a delivery...'_

"...He's an extra bodyguard," Reeve added, eyeing Cloud.

"Right! Well, obviously I'm Laguna Loire, president of Esthar!" He pointed towards the little man next to him, who wore a large frill. "This is my head scientist, Dr. Odine!" Laguna then pointed towards the group he had brought with him, naming them all off. "That's Irvine, and she's Quistis, that's Selphie, Zell, and this is Rinoa..." He pointed at Squall with his thumb. "And this is my son, Squall."

Squall rolled his eyes at the introduction. He didn't like being introduced as the son of the president, it felt pretentious. Laguna continued. "They're my guards, but they're also friends of Squall's, you see."

"Laguna..." Squall warned from between his teeth. Laguna never shuts up, he thought.

Reeve nodded. It was a risk on his part to be here, too. He would have thought it strange that they were a group of friends, but who was surrounding him right now? "Since you'll be staying a few days, let us guide you to the guest area. Please, follow me...Yuffie, if you could stay here until the machine is offline..." He motioned for the group to follow him, the so-called delivery boy taking the rear of the group and eyeing them suspiciously as Reeve and Laguna casually spoke up front with Odine about energy technology. Rinoa looked back and the blond man took notice of her. She quickly looked ahead again and held on tight to Squall as they made their way out of the room and into a vast hallway.

Squall frowned as he looked down at her. "What's wrong?" he mumbled softly. The dark haired sorceress was snugly attached to his jacket covered arm.

"Nothing...That guy is really suspicious of us, isn't he?" she whispered to him.

Her knight shrugged. "If a bunch of strangers from another dimension came to our home, I think I might be the same way." He looked back towards Selphie, the girl almost dancing with excitement as she observed the new world in front of her; the rest of the group seemed much calmer, waiting to see what might lay beyond the building before giving into fascination. It was just a hallway, after all.

"Here are our guest chambers. There are plenty of rooms, please use them at your discretion..." He opened a large, rich wooden door that opened to a rectangular chamber with a multitude of rooms branching off from the main room and large, red velvety curtains covering the far wall and a chandelier fed golden light throughout the spacious room; obviously this area was used for important guests that might be staying in the area.

"...Cloud will also be using one of the rooms for the time you are here." Cloud gave a dark look to the WRO leader, then went back to observing the group, leaning against the wall near the door. Reeve ignored the face his friend had given him and did a short bow with clasped hands in front of him. "Take your time! I'll have Miss Kisaragi escort you and Dr. Odine to my office in a little while, President Loire. If you don't mind."

Laguna gave Reeve a thumbs up. "Sure thing!" He looked about as Reeve closed the doors behind him, then scratched the back of his head before making a dash for a room near the back. "I call dibs!"

Squall slapped his forehead in embarrassment after watching his father playfully make his way towards the back of the room. The rest joined Laguna in a search for a proper room, couples finding the larger beds to their liking. The rooms weren't particularly well lit but were at the very least well kept with quality sheets on the soft beds and private bathrooms. The bathrooms were strange to the visitors, holding both showers and a tub while separated from the toilet by a wall.

Leaving their chosen rooms they conglomerated in the main chamber. Selphie peeked through the curtains to look at the city below them and bounced happily as she observed a new world. The rest noticed Yuffie had entered the guest area, she was speaking softly to Cloud as she waited for Laguna and Odine to finish their business. The delivery boy's face had softened into one of pure concern, nodding and shaking his head to the young woman's queries. He looked back towards the guests, and his face became stony again. Yuffie turned towards them and motioned for the president and the scientist to follow her. Squall looked at her and held up his hand to catch her attention.

"I think one of us should be with them, too," Squall said, crossing his arms.

Yuffie nodded, conceding to the idea. "Yeah, pick whoever."

Quistis raised her hand. "If you don't mind...I might make a good compliment to Laguna's way of communicating." The blonde gave a small, cheeky smile before coming forward. Yuffie gave a small smile back. Her spiky haired acquaintance simply watched the exchange from behind her, his arms crossed over his chest and back still to the wall.

"If you're ready, sirs, I'll be escortin' you both to Mr. Tuesti's office!" Laguna waved at her as he bounded over while Dr. Odine shuffled by. She opened the door, letting them through, but peeked her head in once more before leaving. "We'll be back in a little while, so for now try to make yourselves at home..." Yuffie looked at Cloud and smirked. "That means you, too, Spike," she whispered too loudly, Cloud narrowing his eyes at her before she closed the doors.

"Woooo, the city looks so cool!" Selphie came from under the curtains, cheerfully returning to the group. "Seriously though, what's up with the big, ugly thing in the distance...Um...Cloud?" she chimed, almost forgetting the man's name. He blinked at her but said nothing, looking away and towards the floor.

"Maybe he doesn't know," Irvine said, half joking as he went to sit on one of the plush sofas. Zell joined him while Rinoa went to peek out the window to see for herself. Squall leaned on the wall behind one of the couches and checked the room for any point of entry that an assailant could take in an attempt to keep himself from thinking too much.

Selphie seemed to take the silence as a challenge, coming over to the delivery boy and looking him over with her hands on her hips. He looked back at her, scowling as she studied him. Annoyed by her stare, he angrily spoke up. "Is there anything I can help you with... _ma'am_?"

She looked back into his narrowed, blue eyes with curiosity dripping green ones. "Well...It'd just be nice to talk to someone from here, y'know." Selphie took interest in his swords, looking at what she could make out. "I don't know how you can carry that many swords of that size without back problems."

Cloud sighed and closed his eyes.

"Do you treat your customers like this!" She playfully stomped her foot on the white floor.

"I don't," he said flatly.

Selphie frowned as he opened his eyes up again, matching her frown with his own. "Why so mean, then?" The rest of the party seemed to be enjoying their conversation, multiple pairs of eyes on them.

Cloud put a gloved hand through his spikes. "I'm not mean. I just...don't trust you yet."

"Oh. Well, I guess I can understand that. Still, it wouldn't hurt to know what that big thing in the distance is, would it?" Selphie cocked her head, and Squall noted she was using her playful charm to burrow through the blond man's shell; she had a way with that, he had to admit.

Cloud sighed and nodded. "I guess it wouldn't hurt. That's Midgar, an abandoned city." He paused, wondering if he should say more; the warrior decided they would find out either way. "It was destroyed several years ago by...well...a meteor." Suddenly to Squall, the name of the WRO made much more sense.

Selphie's eyes widened and she put a hand to her mouth. "A meteor?" She frowned and made her way back to the window, peeking with Rinoa; a moment later she returned to Cloud, the man holding a less hostile visage. "How come it's not a crater, then?"

Cloud looked uncomfortable with the question. "I don't think I should be talking about all of that just yet..." He looked away again. Selphie seemed to understand, and nodded.

"Thanks, Cloud." She turned and bounded towards Irvine, sitting next to him as he and Zell lounged on the couch. The group chattered softly between each other as Cloud listened with his eyes closed and arms crossed again, trying to hear any inkling of an evil plan while they waited for Laguna, Odine and Quistis to return.

"Yeah. Xu said the Galbadian government was looking for any and all sorceresses they can find."

"Damn. Can't blame them though, one of them started this portal business, didn't she?"

Cloud frowned. Sorceresses? _'They must be extraordinarily dangerous if they can open up dimensional portals like this.'_

"Guess we left the Garden at the right time. I really don't feel like that business anymore."

 _'Garden?'_

"Hey, Squall. Do you think your dad will be back soon?" That girl that kept looking back at him...

"Knowing him, he's probably chewing Mr. Tuesti's ear off. I don't think he knows what he got himself into, talking to Laguna." Cloud let out a quiet snort as he listened to Squall's feelings on his presidential father.

"Yeah, but I think Quistis might temper him a bit, don't you think?"

"Maybe."

Cloud opened his eyes. Three of the occupants sat upon one of the couches and the other two stood by the window. They seemed preoccupied with idle talk, and he felt less worried than when Reeve had contacted him a week ago, their conversations were nonthreatening. He silently lifted himself off the wall, walking towards an unused room that he would claim for himself.

Walking through the dark room he checked on the amenities, never having used the rooms in the WRO building before. _'Fancy bathrooms, fancy furniture...Closet?'_ He peeked into the darkness of the closet, noticing some extra towels and blankets and what looked like simple nightwear for sudden guests. Taking a look at some of it, he decided he could probably fit in it if he really had to spend the night. Cloud sighed wistfully. So close to home and yet here he was, stuck babysitting interdimensional aliens.

The pay Reeve offered was just too tempting, however. It more than covered the loss in business over the next several days; it was at least half a year's worth of deliveries and bar work combined. The warrior wasn't afraid to admit he balked at the payment, wondering what the catch could possibly be from his friend. The catch was something he never would have guessed. He almost punched a hole in the wall in his office at what he considered a foolish decision that could destroy the planet, deciding to go after talking to Tifa about it.

It wasn't as if he hadn't been aware of the strange robot that appeared in the center of Edge, purporting to be from a benevolent civilization from another world. He had also been aware of rumors of strange portals appearing here and there and eventually disappearing and leaving no evidence of it ever existing. Cloud had not expected Reeve to throw caution to the wind and allow a visit to their world, and he had argued with Reeve that it was a deadly mistake. There was only so much he was capable of if they turned out to be hostiles, but Reeve had said they had had plenty of time to do something via one of the portals that showed up seldomly.

So far, it seemed his worries had been wonderfully misplaced, for now. Then he gets a huge payout for three days of work; perhaps he could take the family out to Costa Del Sol for a vacation with some of it, he thought. Barret could join them, maybe even Yuffie if she promised not to bury him in sand as he napped again.

"Yo, Cloud, you in here?" Cloud turned around to look at Zell, who was peeking into the room. Zell's eyes widened as Cloud faced him, and he frowned back in the dark.

"Yeah...Need something?" he queried.

"Uh, n-no...Just wonderin' if you were alright in here..." Zell said lowly, his jaw hanging open.

"Oh. Thanks, but I'm fine. Just checkin' out the room."

"...In the dark?"

Cloud mentally kicked himself for forgetting to turn on the lights. "...Yeah." _'Damn.'_

"O-okay, then." Zell popped his head back out of the room, leaving Cloud to stand alone in the middle of the dark room with a sigh on his lips. He decided to leave before anyone else barged into his bedroom.

"That guy has some freaky eyes, man," Zell whispered to his seated friends. Cloud overheard as his head peeked out from the door to his room, still frowning. He was a bit of a freak, he had to admit to himself. They only saw the tip of the iceberg, however.

The door opened to the group room, and Laguna, Odine, Quistis and Yuffie made their way inside. While Dr. Odine held his usual smug look and Quistis had a slightly curious smile, Laguna was happy as ever and Yuffie was totally relaxed. She looked around and found Cloud, putting her arm around his neck and prying him away from the quiet darkness of his room. He looked terribly uncomfortable to any in the gathered group that glanced their way.

" _Heeeey, Spike! They're cool!_ " she whispered into his ear in Wutaian; Cloud had picked up the language from bits of Zack's memories and Yuffie's urging. As a delivery boy, he knew the basics to several common languages and his native tongue, but Wutaian he knew best if just to know what the little ninja was up to.

He finally pulled himself away from the chipper young woman, a blush on his cheeks. " _How's that_?"

" _Totally not Jenova freaks, they let us take a peek at some cells. They're almost identical to us._ " She was grinning now, shaking his shoulder.

Cloud sighed. " _That's relieving. Tell me more later..._ " he mumbled.

Yuffie looked back to the others, waving them over joyously. "Well you guys, Dr. Odine agreed to assist in our energy tech, and you seem safe to us, so we're gonna let you roam around the building with Cloud as your guide for the day. Tomorrow a bunch of leaders are gonna be here to meet President Laguna, so try to enjoy the afternoon, okay?" She made a face with a finger to her cheek as she thought. "You know what, I don't wanna be cooped up in the office...I'll join ya."

"You can do that?" Squall said, surprised. Didn't she have orders and duties?

She scoffed. "Reeve trusts me to act on my own."

Several minutes later two groups had formed; Cloud would guide Squall, Rinoa, and Laguna, While Yuffie would guide Selphie, Irvine, Quistis and Zell. "The more the merrier!" the ninja had chimed. Cloud seemed satisfied with his smaller group, both groups leaving the room and walking towards the elevator nearby. Odine had decided to stay behind and speak to a scientist in the group room, too interested in this new world to think of going to lunch.

"I vill just have ze room servize zend up a platter!" the strange little scientist said before they left.

Selphie held her stomach. "I'm hungry...What kinda alien food do you eat around here?" she inquired.

Sephie, I think it'd be native food...We're the aliens, remember?" Irvine said with an amused grin.

Cloud snorted. "There's a fancy cafeteria on this floor, if I remember right. A cafe downstairs and a grunt's cafeteria, too."

Laguna scratched the back of his head. "How fancy's fancy, though?"

Cloud shrugged. "Never eaten here."

Yuffie chimed in. "It's the place that serves Mr. Tuesti's food when he's in town, and he hasn't complained yet. I like it, so there's a vote for that!"

"All right, so let's try that then!" Laguna looked towards Cloud, who shrugged and lead the way. Yuffie led her group in the same direction, chattering wildly to them about the building. They passed several areas of the large building, and Rinoa saw a library as they neared their destination.

"I wanna go in there, next!" she chimed. Squall gave her a small smile, remembering the sorceress' love of reading.

"If that's where you wanna go," Cloud responded. They continued on, reaching an area with glass windows revealing a small restaurant with multiple booths and natural lighting. The warrior walked to the entrance, his swords swaying softly on his lower back as he moved. Reaching it, he stopped and waited for the two groups to reach him. His mind was on sorceresses, and how a mysterious being could hold such power as to rend the fabric of space and time to create portals.


	2. Chapter 2

Next one will be out when I'm ready. These two chapters were slow work.

* * *

The restaurant was mostly empty at the time, in between lunch and dinner rushes. A sign said to seat themselves or so the ninja said, and they eventually found a booth that could handle their party size. Yuffie and Cloud stood, waiting to assist; they assumed they writing might be terribly different from what they were used to.

A waiter came to the table, bringing menus politely. The handsome man walked off to give them a few minutes to figure out their order. Laguna held the menu this way and that, unsure what was said on it. "Ummm..."

Cloud pointed at some of the entrees, giving the descriptions to the confused group. "I've never eaten here, but you really can't go wrong with a rice bowl."

Yuffie pointed at something else. "Curry is nice if you want a little heat!"

Eventually they figured out what they wanted, the waiter coming over to take their orders and scurrying off to have the chefs take care of it and to fetch drinks. The bodyguards looked towards the bar counter, making their way there. "We'll be over here if you need us, within earshot!" Yuffie said, waving.

"So, like...You said Cloud's got freaky eyes, Zell?" Irvine said in a soft voice, not wanting to get the attention of any eavesdroppers.

Zell nodded after taking a gulp of his tea. "Yeah, he was checkin' out his room with the lights off, and when he looked at me, they were glowing!" He whispered to the group.

Rinoa frowned. "...Maybe some people have glowing eyes here."

"Yeah, but he could see in the dark. Dude's a bit off puttin'." Zell said with a worried look on his face.

Selphie shrugged. "He seems to get along with Yuffie. So, he's probably alright."

Squall wanted to change the subject, not wanting to think about the warrior feigning to be a courier who would be sharing space with them in the guest quarters. "So, what did you talk about with Mr. Tuesti?"

"A lot of stuff! Like, aliens and weird stuff like that." Laguna said. Cloud noticed he was a little excited and a little nervous, too, as he overheard the man as he talked to Yuffie.

Quistis nodded. "There was an alien called "Jenova" that apparently crashed into the planet thousands of years ago. It was unearthed decades ago, and it's been trouble since." She said simply. "Apparently the former de facto world government bit off more than it could chew..."

"Um, there's aliens here?" Rinoa squeaked.

Laguna scratched his chin. "Just that kind of dead one. Mr. Tuesti and Yuffie made it sound a lot more complicated than just 'dead'."

"It seems everything is more complicated than it has to be." Quistis said. "Apparently experiments were done on the body and it's lead to the world almost coming to an end. They were kind of vague about it, as if it was too much of a secret to say..."

"How bad of an alien could it be?" Selphie chimed.

"It's why they requested cell samples from us." Quistis responded. "They're that worried. Apparently it can shapeshift and...infect others with its DNA."

"Damn. I'm surprised they let us through." Irvine mumbled.

Laguna nodded. "Yuffie said a friend had met another person from our dimension wanderin' around before finding another portal, so I guess it as just to be super sure we were safe."

 _"You said they were safe, right?"_ Cloud asked, sipping his water. They sat on plush stools, looking between themselves and their group to make sure everything was fine.

Yuffie nodded. _"Yep. No trace of any Jenova like DNA. We even cross referenced with yours in case there was something like yours."_

The warrior nodded, his DNA make up mutated by years of mako and S-Cell injections. _"Good. I guess the only other thing we could worry about is deceit by other means, but I think President Laguna is..."_

 _"Too dorky for that kind of thing?"_ Yuffie offered.

Cloud nodded, giving a half smile as he went for an edamame.

* * *

Squall didn't like the talk about shapeshifting aliens with complications. Complications mean it wasn't easy to kill, that it might still be around. He was frowning, staring into his drink as the others chatted. He looked up to where Cloud was, the aloof swordsman sitting at the counter speaking to Yuffie casually. Rinoa nudged into him a little, and he turned to look at her.

"I guess Yuffie and Cloud know each other pretty well, huh?" She said.

Squall shrugged. "I guess so."

"He seems kinda uptight." Selphie said, Irvine grinning.

"He seems like he is. Maybe he'll chill later?" The marksman shrugged. "I don't think Yuffie would hang with a fuddy duddy."

"Almost as uptight as you can be, Squall." Quistis grinned, biting the edge of her glass. Squall frowned.

The waiter came by before he could defend himself, bringing out several entrees at a time. "Lunch is served! Ah, you had the curry..."

Several minutes later everyone had their lunch, Cloud and Yuffie watching in case they needed anything again. The group looked at their utensils, finding pairs of sticks next to spoons and forks. The two watched as most of them picked up forks, stabbing into their food. Yuffie raised a brow. "You're supposed to use chopsticks for those..." She bit her lip, trying not to laugh.

"I guess they're enjoying the food, at least." Cloud said.

After some time Cloud finished his drink, looking back at the chattering group. The president's son looked back at him, his stormy eyes looking back with an unreadable face. He stared for a few moments and then looked back towards the counter. He munched on an edamame, thinking deeply about the strange event of portals opening and risking their world. Would he ever meet one of these dangerous sorceresses? He hoped to Gaia not; if they're being hunted down in that world they must be trouble.

Cloud hopped off his seat, his swords swaying on his back like deadly chimes. He looked towards his group, the party slowly getting up and chattering still about this and that, inane things unlike the subject of Jenova that he caught them speaking about. And how could he blame them? It was an interesting, horrible subject he'd had enough of for a lifetime.

* * *

"Hmmhmmhmmmm..." The sorceress found herself in a strange, cold cavern, her pale green eyes much like the environment she had slipped into. A power called to her here, a dark, alien power. One she would use for her own, if she could find it. The voice was masculine and deadly soft and low, promises of domination and otherworldly strength if she would just find 'Mother'.

The sorceress wasn't wearing proper clothing for the strange place she delved into, a skimpy violet dress, but through her magic she kept a bubble of heat about her skimpy visage. The cave she found herself in was full of crystals dripping with glowing green liquid that radiated magic; the voice commanded she protect herself from it, her bubble now also an umbrella. "Mother...Who is Mother?" She mumbled.

 _'Mother is here. Those insects tried to stop Her, but now...Would you like to rule two worlds? I only want revenge.'_ The deep voice dripped poisoned honey.

"Yes, but who is she?" The woman impatiently said. A nudge to go down a tunnel of beautiful green crystals took her deeper down, and soon she found herself on the shore of a glowing pond of the green liquid, a dead end. She sighed heavily, fingers through her dark hair. "Is this your mother?" The sorceress said mockingly.

The voice seemed to give an ominous chuckle. _'Behind that pillar of materia. Mother is there.'_

The sorceress sighed, walking towards the 'materia' crystal. As she came closer, a feeling of dark power hit her, making her stop a moment. Was this a wise idea? The voice urged her on to collect 'Mother'. She inched closer, teeth clenched. Her elegant fingers touched the crystal pillar, the magical sensation making her whole body hum with power. As she peeked behind it, a pulsing blue mass greeted her sight, and she looked at it with disgust while crouching down to investigate.

"This is 'Mother'? It's just a piece of rotten meat..." She gave it a poke, the voice urging her to pick it up if she wanted power.

"No...I'm not picking this thing up."

A chuckle reverberated through the cavern. _'That's too bad, for you.'_ The mass quivered as the sorceress looked about in confusion, and it shot towards her mouth, forcing it open and squirming down her throat as she tried to tear it out, blacking out soon after to evil laughter as her body burned from the mako exposure and the flesh churning in her body.

* * *

Resting on one of the sofas after dinner with a book on human anatomy in his hands, Squall watched the strange swordsman as he tapped on his phone, his armor and swords left in his guestroom. He had taken them to the library after lunch as requested, Rinoa sifting through the countless books available and asking to take some up to her guestroom. The swordsman had held his hands out to take her stack of books, but seemed to have seized up a moment. That was unusual as it was, but Squall noticed something the others hadn't that sent chills down his spine.

His normally cerulean, expressive eyes had turned a hard green, the pupils slits. Not for very long, but enough where he caught it. The group had asked if he was alright, and after a few moments Cloud had slowly nodded as he grimaced, saying he wasn't sure what happened with a barely masked worry upon his face.

 _"Y'sure you shouldn't go to the infirmary and get checked?" Laguna asked, concerned._

 _The delivery boy shook his head. "I'll be fine. Let's get these books to the guest room."_

Squall returned to his book, trying to figure out what possible differences there were between the humans of this world and his; so far, there was not much of a difference except for certain rare hair and eye colors and hair types. He looked back up at Cloud, the man staring off in deep thought with his hand holding his head; after a moment he noticed the former SeeD commander watching him and turned to meet his gaze with a raised brow.

"Yeah?"

Squall blinked, his face emotionless. "Are you sure you're alright?"

The delivery boy frowned. "Yes, thanks for asking."

"I saw what happened to your eyes earlier, you know." Squall pried quietly.

Worry flashed on Cloud's face a moment, replaced with a stony glare. "I told you, I'm fine..." He went back to his phone.

Squall narrowed his eyes, distrustful of their supposed bodyguard. Mr. Tuesti trusted _him_? "If you do anything funny around-"

Cloud glared at him, interrupting him. "Guess the feeling's mutual." He got up from his seat and headed into his room, shutting the door.

"Hey, Squall. Are you coming to bed?" Rinoa chimed behind him from the bedroom they had chosen, the man getting up from the sofa and heading towards the sorceress.

"Yeah. Just worried a little, I guess." He closed the door behind him, then sat on the edge of the bed. Rinoa sat next to him, her arms perched behind her as she looked up towards the ceiling.

"About Cloud, because of earlier?" She frowned; he had told her what he had seen.

Squall nodded. "He just seems off, like Zell said." Glowing eyes that changed into something cat like, holding enough swords to weigh down a chocobo as if it were nothing, seeing in the dark...He was human, right? The book he read had nothing on humans having traits like him.

Rinoa shook her head. "I don't think Mr. Tuesti would put us in any danger. Besides, my powers still work here, I tried it out."

Squall blinked. "Really?"

Rinoa nodded. The Guardian Forces hadn't been equipped, owing to the possibility of them being stripped from their minds as they went through the portal, or at least that was a worry of Odine's. "I tested it out while you were out there...So if anyone does anything funny, I think I can handle it."

* * *

Cloud rested on his bed, the guest clothing fitting well enough. Another pair of his usual clothing laid folded on the dresser, the older clothing taken to the building's cleaning room with the others; it would be brought up by breakfast, but he wanted to be prepared. He had tried out the shower and bath, wanting to soak to clear his mind of turmoil.

He was right, it seemed; his eyes had momentarily burned in a familiar fashion he hated, that monster tugging on him mentally...He shuddered. Was Sephiroth still there, up to something? What could he possibly want, be up to? Cloud folded his hands over his abdomen, thinking. He had group texted Tifa, Yuffie and Reeve, disliking the frank discussion about his seizure earlier in the day. Yuffie had agreed to stay near him tomorrow if he wanted the support; while he had given a "if you want to", he was truly relieved she would stick by him before the party.

Crawling under the covers, he listened to the muffled conversations of the two next door so he could ignore his own loneliness, finally drifting off into a restless sleep.

 _ **Everything was white, like an eternal fog. Cloud felt himself float down gently, his boots crunching on something...He looked down, and he was back in the flower field; green leaves and yellow flowers blossomed out towards the horizon. He knew this place.**_

 _ **"You're back." A familiar voice rang out behind him, soft and gentle.**_

 _ **"Knew you couldn't stay away from us!" A confident voice chimed in greeting.**_

 _ **Cloud blinked. "Aerith...Zack."**_

 _ **Aerith put a hand on his shoulder, the warrior standing still, not wanting to break contact with his dead friends. "It looks like you're needed again, Cloud."**_

 _ **He sighed. Cloud knew, he knew because of that seizure. Sephiroth was trying to surface again. "I know. I...He can't control me anymore." His voice was worried.**_

 _ **Zack shook his head, Cloud unable to see the motion. "That's right! But, this time he might be a bit more trouble."**_

 _ **"He has a sorceress, from that other world." Aerith said. "But, you have one with you, too. She can help stop this."**_

 _ **Cloud's eyes widened. One of those dangerous beings is being used by Sephiroth; not only that, but there's one near him? "Who?" He said almost angrily.**_

 _ **"Cloud, you ne-"**_

 _ **Everything went to black, and Cloud was falling into oblivion as a familiar, evil laughter filled his body. He strained against it, his rage and panic building as he held his hands to his head.**_

 _ **"This puppet is easy to control."**_

 _ **"Not anymore, Sephiroth!"**_

 _ **The laughter continued. "You won't even know what you've done until I've lifted the curtains from your eyes. I don't even have to attempt to control your body anymore."**_

 _ **Cloud looked around, defiant; his feet had hit solid ground again and the atmosphere was heavy, dripping with the smell of blood. The laughter began again, Cloud's ears ringing. "Look what I've made you do, Cloud."**_

 _ **What was once black was now the low lights of the Seventh Heaven. Cloud's mouth went dry as he tried to swallow, a blood trail leading beyond the counter; it started at the sword in his hand, the blade dripping. As if possessed, he slowly followed it, biting his lip.**_

 _ **"Keep moving, puppet. Examine your work."**_

 _ **He went upstairs, the blood trail splitting into two. The first led into the children's room; he hesitantly went into the dark room even as a little voice in his head screamed not to. The children were there, their bed sheets soaked in blood from slit necks, and Cloud felt bile rising into his throat as the sight of the blood soaked room and bodies became ever more vivid. Marlene had been pierced in the gut with one of the small combination swords, Denzel nearly beheaded, haphazardly splayed on his bed. The warrior shook, his eyes burning and he vomited the bile welling in him; the dark voice tugged him to move on.**_

 _ **Slowly he made his way towards the back bedroom, the sticky blood smearing on the man's boots as his body went through the motions without him. Cloud peeked into his bedroom, and Tifa was there, dead; one of his blades was impaled into her gut and holding her to the wall, her chest slashed over her old scar. He screamed in despair, crying, trying to take her down from the wall. Cloud put a hand to her lifeless cheek, her dull, dead red eyes staring back into his wet, blue ones.**_

 _ **"You cherish everything? Then I'll take everything away." Everything went black again. "I'll make you break everyone you ever loved."**_

 _ **"I won't do this." Cloud croaked.**_

 _ **Sephiroth appeared in front of him, smiling. "You refused before, but it didn't save her, did it?" He grimaced, momentarily caught off guard. Cloud looked his nemesis up and down; did he just show weakness? A familiar voice rang out in Cloud's head, one only he could hear as he fell away:**_

 _ **"Talk to the sorceress, Cloud."**_

 _ **"Who is she?"**_

 _ **"It's-"**_

Cloud jumped violently in his bed, breathing heavily. He laid there for several minutes, trying to calm down and blank out the horrible images in his mind and wipe drying tears from his cheeks. Sorceress...There's a sorceress here, one of those women must be it. The warrior looked towards the clock on the nightstand; it was four thirty. _'No more sleep for now.'_ He'd be fine he reasoned; he'd battled for the better part of a day a couple of years ago, his treatments would keep him going quite a while. Still, he felt tired.

Sniffling he dialed room service to bring up coffee, then went to wash his sweaty face in the bathroom; he put his hands through his hair, the bedhead splaying his soft spikes everywhere. Sighing, he finally left the enveloping darkness of his bedroom, entering the lowlit common room. He looked about, and noticed Rinoa was also up, wearing a white night gown; the girl gave him an uncertain glance, then looked back into a book she was reading. Cloud waited by the door, head down, listening for the room service to come by with his order.

"Um...Y-you couldn't sleep, either?" Rinoa chimed softly at the warrior; he looked up at her with tired eyes. He shook his head.

"...I ordered some coffee." He mumbled. Cloud opened the door, hearing the trolley coming near. After a few moments he headed towards the table between the sofas, a tray of coffee and supplies in one hand and some ceramic mugs in the other. He placed them down, then motioned towards her to take some if she wished as he fixed up a cup for himself, an offer she took happily.

They sat in silence, waking up with help from their hot drinks. Cloud kept his eyes closed, breathing in the steam from his cup between sips as if it could soothe his nightmares away. The girl studied him, worry written on his face; when his guard was down he seemed like any other person to her and not some stern, quiet bodyguard.

"...I had a nightmare, too..." She whispered to herself. To her surprise, Cloud opened his eyes to look at her; his eyes seemingly glowing in the low light of the room.

"How'd you know I had a nightmare..." He said, a brow raised.

Rinoa blinked. "Y-you look like Squall when he has one."

He grunted, relaxing into the sofa. Cloud took a long sip of his coffee, appraising the teenager in front of him; she was a slim, smaller chested version of Tifa almost, and obviously intimidated by him for whatever reason. His face softened, the girl seemed pleasant without being as annoying as Selphie, that one reminding him a bit too much of Yuffie. He looked away, remembering Aerith's words, 'talk to the sorceress'...

"...What's a sorceress?" He mumbled.

Rinoa looked up from her book, holding her mug in both hands. "Um, they're women who command very powerful magic that normal humans can't." Where did he hear about them, she wondered?

He looked back at her, his hair floating lazily about. "Like making portals into other worlds?"

She sipped her coffee, her brows knitted together. "That all happened after a really powerful one was defeated in the future...Oh, it's a confusing story." Rinoa gave a quick rundown of Time Compression, Cloud visibly paling when the girl mentioned Ellone's power; she sounded more terrifying than a sorceress to him.

"Ultimecia...Sorceresses sound extremely dangerous." He fixed another cup of coffee, a frown on his face. He didn't notice Rinoa turn pale at his words and tone of voice. _'Why does Aerith want me to talk to one?'_

"T-They can be, but not all of them are power hungry..." She said weakly, staring into her cup. After a few moments, she looked up at the strange man. "How come your eyes glow?"

His face hardened. "I'd rather not talk about it." Cloud looked away, sipping his coffee.

Rinoa gave a pout. "I told you about sorceresses!" She said in a harsh whisper. The warrior shook his head.

"You did. But that's not personal, is it?" He raised a brow, the sides of his mouth twitching; her pout was amusing him.

Rinoa bit her lip. "I-"

"Rinoa?" A tired Squall poked his head out of the bedroom door, frowning at Cloud as his eyes met the warrior's visage.

She turned, giving him a little wave. "We couldn't sleep."

The common room became quiet, Cloud not wishing to speak further; he mulled over his dream and what possibly could happen next as he drank from his mug. He promised himself to contact Yuffie as soon as he knew she'd be awake. The warrior thought a moment, still curious who this other sorceress was. He looked back at Squall and Rinoa, the two talking to themselves about the book's subject; it was on materia. _'There's a sorceress here, right now. Who is it?'_ He bit his lip, holding onto his mug and thinking whether to broach the subject at all. In the end he decided to wait and talk with Yuffie.

* * *

He woke up on the shore of a bright green pond, the beautiful light of a thousand souls peacefully illuminating the cavern he was reborn in. Materia hummed about in the mako cavern, and he smiled; he was more alive than he had been in nearly four years. It felt good.

Sephiroth's stint at resurrection with the use of his little puppets isn't what he'd call a true living, made of pure will, Jenova cells and corrupted lifestream. Not that it mattered, as his nemesis had defeated him after he had toyed with him like a cat does a mouse. But this mouse was plenty powerful; not as powerful as Sephiroth himself perhaps, but someone he underestimated.

He understood that now. Sephiroth understood, but now he would make Cloud suffer before killing him; with this new power he would break the simpering infantryman's mind with abandon. Sorceress power...It felt like a beautiful fire in his body, waiting to do his bidding, whispering into his ear suggestions of what to do.

Sephiroth slowly stood up, stretching the two black wings he now had. No longer a one winged angel, he was in a sense 'complete'; merged with a female host who granted him a second wing. He turned around, smirking, and his feet crunched on the tiny stone chips of the cavern as he made his way towards the surface. He'd have revenge on Cloud, on the humans, on the Planet...Then he'd have his way on the other world, too. He would be a god to both worlds.

Slowly exiting the large cavern system, he covered his spearmint eyes from the afternoon sun as he stood on a precipice, then saw gentle puffs of smoke out in the distance. A town. Icicle Inn, he remembered. Sephiroth gently floated down, chuckling to himself as he made his way towards the sleepy village; they would be perfect practice for this power.

* * *

 _"Seriously, that's a screwed up dream, Spike."_ Yuffie said, waiting by the door to the library with Cloud; the entire group had decided to hit the room yet again to learn what they could before the party to be prepared. Their guards eyed them occasionally, making sure they stayed out of trouble. Selphie seemed to be showing off a book to Zell, the tattooed teen nodding at her curiously as Quistis looked over science books, a fascinated look on her face.

 _"It is. But I need to talk to their sorceress...Aerith said there's another one here."_

 _"Why not just ask them?"_ Yuffie raised a brow and motioned towards the group.

 _"I don't know..."_ He looked away, rubbing his face. He was hesitant to speak to these people he still barely trusted, who seem to barely trust him as well. Well, except for Selphie and maybe Rinoa. Why did women always seem to flock to him?

 _"Don't be stupid, Cloud. You should know better."_ She pushed his shoulder scoldingly.

He looked down, blushing. _"Yeah. I guess I should."_ The warrior looked back up, watching the group check out their chosen books. He frowned, watching Selphie attempt to carry several heavy books at once, Irvine holding several others behind her. "I'm gonna help her with those." Cloud walked up to the bouncy girl, taking her load in one hand. She beamed up at him, swaying this way and that.

"Thanks!"

He nodded. "No problem." Cloud looked around, frowning; Yuffie had disappeared from her post. "...Where did she go...?"

Irvine spoke up. "Some dude with red hair got her attention. Maybe it was her boyfriend?" He shrugged at the warrior, whose face seemed to drop.

Cloud stormed off towards the exit, books in hand and swords jingling. Selphie put her hands on her hips, humming. "Maybe Cloud's gotta crush on Yuffie, and the other guy's trying to get her?!"

Irvine chuckled. "I honestly don't see him as the romantic type. Less so than Squall." The scarred face of their leader looked up, frowning at the marksman, who gave a goofy smile back.

Quistis chuckled, a few thin books under her shoulder. "Maybe he's full of surprises."

The group began to leave, figuring their guards were right outside the library as it was. Squall looked about, his eyes settling on the two having what seemed to be a hushed discussion about something with the red head Irvine had noticed earlier. The sly looking man looked up, studying the group with a fox like grin. He looked back at the two bodyguards, giving a little nod.

"Okay. Just so we're on the same page with the whole get together thing, yo."

Yuffie nodded. "Thought you guys would be on top of that, seriously!"

"Floor above this one, Reno." Cloud said, pointing up.

Reno nodded, then looked at the former SeeD commander, the grin never leaving his face. He started to walk towards the group, but was stopped by Cloud's greatsword. "Tonight..."

The red head backed away casually, showing not a hint of fear, his grin growing. "Alright, yo. No need to get out your toys." He turned to walk towards a taller, bald man who seemed to silently stand like a statue. "See ya at the party, yo!" Both men departed.

"Guess it's not a love triangle..." Irvine said quietly to Selphie. The two guards started towards the guest room again after Cloud put his weapon away, chattering to each other. Squall assumed it was another language, Yuffie's words quick and Cloud's slower and deliberate; he frowned, not enjoying being in the dark about whatever they were speaking about.

Rinoa put her arm around Squall's. "I wonder what kind of language that is?" She whispered.

Squall shrugged. "Probably just using it to keep us in the dark."

Cloud looked back and raised a brow. "We're talking about the party tonight." Yuffie looked back, rolling her eyes at her friend.

Squall crossed his arms, his nearest comrades looking at him as they all stopped at the entrance to their guest area. "Then you should count us in your talk. We're guards, too."

"I thought you were the President's son?" Yuffie cocked her head. He needed protection too, right?

Laguna nodded. "He's also my top guard, and he commands some of the Estharian military!" The president said helpfully.

Yuffie opened the door to the guest room. "Oh. Well, I mean...Just do whatever you were planning to do to keep safe."

The group entered, Cloud sighing and turning to meet Squall, looking up at his stormy eyes stoically. "Main guard...Alright. The area's pretty safe, there's WRO soldiers everywhere for the sake of safety. Your existence is known to either leaders or those in the WRO that are in the know..." He coughed into his fist. "...The one you saw in the hall, he's what's called a Turk. He's going to be protecting Rufus Shinra. Don't underestimate him or his partner, Rude."

Squall put a hand to his chin. "Rufus Shinra's guards...His name was Reno, right?" Rude must have been the bald guy.

Yuffie and Cloud nodded. The ninja spoke up next. "Godo Kisaragi will be protected by several guards; they'll look like pushovers, but don't underestimate them!" She gave a prideful smile.

Selphie butted in, enjoying the rundown of leaders. "Are you related?"

"Um, well..."

Cloud interrupted. "Then there's Bughe. Cosmo Canyon doesn't really have any actual leaders, but they agreed to bring him for the sake of getting to know you all. His guard is...Well, you'll meet him yourself in a bit, won't you?" Cloud gave a faint smile, not wanting to ruin the surprise.

Yuffie nodded. "We're protecting both Mr. Tuesti and you if you need it. I'm sure everything'll be fine, though."

Quistis spoke up. "Is that all the leaders? This book I was reading said there were multiple...erm, city-states."

Cloud rubbed the back of his neck. "It's the more prominent ones. Many places are just glorified villages and towns that have to keep monsters at bay."

"Hey, you guys gonna be servin' somethin' better at the party than what was for breakfast, right?" Zell asked with his hands on his hips.

Yuffie sighed, holding her face. "We're talkin' about security...What was wrong with breakfast?"

Rinoa wrinkled her nose. "Rice with raw egg, and some weird pickles with fish?" Squall gave a thin smile; he wasn't fond of the breakfast either, but listening to Rinoa's complaint was funny.

Cloud shrugged. "The eggs were really fresh, you know. You should have thrown in some shoyu so it'd taste like something." What was wrong with it? He had stared at them as they looked over their eggs, showing them what you were supposed to do with it. Most of them looked on in silent horror as he cracked the egg into his hot rice and swirled it about thoroughly until it was totally mixed and golden, then added a dark fluid. He brought his bowl to his lips, using chopsticks to assist the rice into his mouth.

 _"Okay, now you try it,"_ He had said.

Selphie happily went at it as the others stared at her attempt, and she frowned as she stirred the slimy, hot mass in her bowl. Testing it, she pushed the bowl away with a disgusted look on her face.

"But it's slimy!" Selphie said, bouncing on her heels. "You ate it like it was nothing!"

The warrior raised his brows. "I guess so. Never really thought about the texture that much." He liked it enough...

Yuffie grumbled. "There'll be some stuff you're familiar with after sampling our lunches and dinners, and a few things you may or may not like. All safe and fresh, though, promise."

Laguna beamed. "Well, if it's like those...I can totally look forward to it!"

Squall was still thinking over the names, unconcerned about the menu. What he was concerned about was Rinoa's strange nightmare and Cloud's seizure, the description of the man in her dream having the warrior's eyes being worrisome. If it was anything at all, but she claimed it to be so very real...He hoped to Hyne nothing happened this evening.


	3. Chapter 3

The snowy town of Icicle Inn was a small tourist outpost of snowboarding and rock climbing, a place opposite the tropics of Mideel and Costa Del Sol; it had been rebuilt in the last two years after a terrible accident involving the Turks, a detective couple and a mysterious man. It was quiet now, the town slowing down as the sun's last rays grazed the fresh snow; the cool, pine scented air of the land embraced the landscape. Cissnei was returning from the south, finished with a job that took her to the abandoned Modeoheim; fortunately it seemed all the research papers had been destroyed or taken to Midgar at some point in the past.

The lights of the town glowed gold on the horizon, putting a happy spring in the chilly step of the Turk. Icicle Inn wasn't her favorite place to do a mission, but Rufus would call his Turks to the North Continent often to check for any traces of Sephiroth as a small way of atoning Shinra for their mistakes in the recent past. She sighed, wanting nothing more than a hot cup of the village's famous cocoa and her guest bed.

Something caught Cissnei's eyes as she approached, and she dodged towards a grove of blue spruce to hide. Her Turk senses were tingling, she joked to herself. Then she heard something...Crackling. Screaming. Cissnei looked this way and that, and buried herself in the snow bank by the fluffiest of the trees. Poking a hole into her new secret base, she watched helplessly as the town began to roast. She was divided on going in to help, or to stay in position; not knowing the cause, and the cause could kill her. She flipped open her phone, texting Tseng the situation. After a minute, she was given a reply.

 **Stay hidden. Observe.**

Sighing, she put the phone away and watched helplessly. A few people were running towards her direction, into the icy darkness of the Icicle Plateau. Cissnei tensed, hoping they would escape whatever they were running from; they began to run past her position as if possessed of a transcendent terror. What would make someone so terrified? She peeked again towards the roaring fire of Icicle Inn, screams making it to her ears now and again.

Cissnei jumped and bit her hand, trying not to scream. Loud, multiple "thunk" noises had rung out near her, and she looked through her peep hole, holding her breath if just to keep from possibly being noticed. Her eyes went wide; the escaping villagers were impaled on large pikes of crystal clear ice, hot blood staining the magically pure ice. Laughter from the direction of the village caused her to look towards it, a tall silhoutte with two wings and a long, familiar sword leisurely made its way towards a pillar, stopping to caress the bloodied ice. The hair on the man's head was silvery and reflecting the flames of the village.

The voice was deathly silk. Masculine and feminine, as if two voices sitting on top of one another. "This new power will bring the Planet to its knees." He almost seemed to look towards her hidden fort, causing Cissnei's heart to jump into her throat. The familiar shape seemed to stare for a few moments, then looked away. The figure crunched onward through the darkness, Cissnei frozen in terror on the off chance he was still nearby. After an impossibly long time the Turk finally took out her cellphone, texting Tseng the situation and requesting assistance. She knew who that was. Cissnei bit her lip, and put a gloved hand to her mouth, hoping against hope that he could be stopped again.

* * *

"Hey, the food looks way more edible this time 'round!" Zell said as they entered the large party room; it had white marble floors and large windows overseeing the small metropolis the building resided in as stars began to twinkle overhead and the blood red horizon dulled. There was a table hosting the leaders as they began to seat themselves at marked chairs; Reeve assisting Laguna and Odine, and a long table on the other side of the room serving different kinds of food to order.

"We're eating last, Zell...Out job comes first." Squall chastised. He moved towards his father, standing in a suitable position while the others found positions around the room to keep any trouble at bay; Cloud was nearby, leaning on a pillar, his open collar grazing his cheek. How could he take his job so lightly? _'Whatever.'_

The leaders began to speak about usual leader things in Squall's mind. Prosperity this, advancement that. He was familiar now with their mako energy and materia, some of the world's geography, and the mysterious Jenova subject from the library's many books; apparently there was a "Jenova war" not many years ago that involved it and a man named Sephiroth, Reeve being a known hero of the conflict. Squall had stiffly asked Yuffie and Cloud about the subject, but they only responded with sad eyes and a shake of their heads. Had it been that bad for them? Perhaps that ruined city was important to them, the book explaining the conclusion Cloud was reluctant to speak of the first day they were there; the planet itself destroyed the meteor, but not without large casualties.

He gazed at the scenery, noticing the Cosmo Canyon representative had a large, red creature sitting next to him patiently, as if listening to their conversations. The tail seemed to be on fire, but nothing about it burned as it slowly flicked about. Is that Bughe's guard? The robe covered elder seemed to be regaling something to Laguna, his father's green eyes burning with interest. Odine was beside him, looking rather bored of the talk, until the subject seemed to go into something more into his interests.

Looking towards Rufus Shinra, the man seemed quiet and reserved with a thin smile on his lips. He looked like a man of many secrets, the bright blue eyes regarding everything happening about them in some fashion akin to a cat watching prey; the other leaders were obviously wary of him to one degree or another besides Laguna. _'Shinra...He must be the president of the former electric company.'_ Behind him were the two Turks from earlier...Reno and Rude, and they always worked together, Yuffie said. Reno seemed to notice Squall's studious eye and give a sly wink, and the former mercenary narrowed his eyes in response.

Reno just grinned.

"You know...I felt something strange a little while back..." Rinoa whispered. Squall jumped, the girl having sneaked up on him; he put a hand to his face and sighed into it. He looked back at her, cocking his head.

"What was it?" He mumbled.

She looked around, then brought his ear close. "It felt like another sorceress. Not really close, but...Like a wave, a sorceress using her powers." Rinoa pulled back, a worried frown on her face.

"Hmm. Maybe one came through a rift." Squall offered, there was nothing they could do about it unless she showed up, anyway. He looked back, the leaders being served their meals as they continued to bond. The former commander looked back at the pillar, Cloud gone; searching a bit he found him at the service table holding a fish shaped pastry in each hand. The warrior walked back over to the pillar, munching on one as he seemingly zoned out. Squall shook his head.

"That guy isn't taking this very seriously."

Rinoa smirked. "Maybe he thinks everything is under control?" She looked back, and he was watching them, as if he had heard their conversation, then went back to eating his food. How could he hear them, he wasn't very close by...

Rinoa squeaked as the big red beast that sat next to Bughe slowly sauntered by, giving her a curious look with its large amber eye. It came up to Cloud, the man crouching down and feeding the beast the other pastry he had in his hand as he finished his own; Squall assumed he knew the creature. He seemed to mumble to the beast, and it looked back towards the couple, licking its chops with an inquiring gaze. Cloud lifted himself up, wiping his gloves of any crumbs, and began to walk towards them with the creature behind him. Behind them both, Yuffie had finally come into the room, running as if she were late.

Cloud looked at the two, a concerned look on his face. "I needed to talk to you about something-"

"Cloud? Cloud! Need you _now_ , please!" The little ninja was panting and holding the warrior's arm, and pulling him towards the far wall where a man with long black hair stood; Squall figured he was another Turk from the looks of it. Reeve looked over, frowning; he excused himself from the table to walk towards his supposed guards.

"I guess I'll be right back, then..." He let Yuffie pull him away, asking her what the big deal was as he made his way towards whatever destination the girl had in mind; the red beast and Reeve seemed to follow the two out of curiosity.

"Wonder what's gotten into Yuffie?" Rinoa said questioningly, scratching the side of her head.

Squall shrugged. He looked back at Laguna, the man having a good time still despite Reeve's absence. He returned to the group in the far corner of the room, Yuffie making desperate moves with her hands and Cloud putting a hand to his mouth in surprise. He looked down a moment at the beast, then at the tall Turk as the man spoke. The warrior looked down as if in thought, then looked directly at Rinoa and Squall with Reeve. Rinoa flushed and leaned into Squall, the man frowning.

The WRO leader promptly made his way towards the table again. _'Something's up,'_ Squall mused in his mind. Something not good.

Cloud walked towards them again, Yuffie holding onto his arm and chattering in that language again.

"Nē, atashitachi wa nani o subeki ka o rikai suru hitsuyō ga arimasu!" The ninja said with a panicked face.

"Ore wa sore o rikai suru tame ni kanojo no tasuke ga hitsuyōdesu." Cloud responded slowly. He looked back towards the couple, his eyes full of worry despite the neutral face. "I overheard you. You said you felt 'another' sorceress, right?" His voice was low.

Rinoa squeaked, positioning herself behind Squall, the man narrowing his stormy eyes. Cloud shook his head, as if they mistook his intentions. The sorceress poked her head out, looking at the warrior in front of her. "Y-Yeah..."

Cloud looked down, as if thinking, his collar stroking his cheeks. "You're the sorceress she wants me to..." He mumbled. Looking up, he motioned for them to come with him. "Something bad happened. I...Everyone might be in danger." Squall and Rinoa looked at each other with uncertain glances, then begrudgingly followed the spiky haired man, unsure of his intentions. The scarred teenager put a hand on his gunblade, just in case.

"H-He knows I'm a sorceress...How could he hear that..." Rinoa was worried. Cloud had shown nothing but distaste towards the powerful females, seemingly considering them all a threat from what she could sense from his body language and voice. She wondered if he truly thought the same of her as they came to the small group.

The tall, dark haired man regarded the two newcomers quietly. "I'm Tseng. And you two are?"

"...Squall."

"Rinoa."

He nodded. "There was...an incident, on North Continent. Now, my...friends, here, tell me there's beings called 'sorceresses' who command great magical power from your dimension. Well, great magical power happened up there. The town of Icicle Inn was burned to the ground this afternoon, with a single survivor." Rinoa gasped, then looked down as if in thought.

"What does that have to do with us?" Squall said defensively.

He motioned towards Rinoa. "She felt a sorceress, correct?" His black eyes pierced into the girl's own as her eyes came to lock with his, and she slowly nodded.

Tseng nodded back, giving a mirthless laugh and turned to Cloud. "It seems your 'friend' finds new ways to come back and torture us, Hm, Strife?"

Cloud said nothing, his eyes conveying a silently raging anger, arms crossed.

Yuffie piped up. "We need a plan, fast. 'Cause if...ohmigawd this's bad." She held her head, her face full of panic.

"Who's your 'friend'?" Rinoa said innocently.

Tseng spoke up. "Why, the great Sephiroth, of course. I'm sure he's on his way right now-" Squall's eyes widened; that was the name of the man who started the Jenova War. Was he strong enough to come back from death?

"Shut up." Cloud said quietly.

"-to settle the score with Cloud-"

"Shut up!" The warrior's face was filled with barely controlled rage and panic. After a few deep breaths he put his hand though his hair and looked at Rinoa, pointing. "You. I was told to contact you. You're the sorceress."

Squall put an arm defensively around the woman. "And what do you plan to do with her?" He said threateningly.

He shrugged. "I have no plans. You said you had a nightmare too, right? What happened in it?" Cloud searched the girl with his eyes.

Rinoa put her fingers together. "A scary man with silver hair and green cat eyes was burning a village. Then a while after that he killed a bunch of people in a city, and made monsters, too. The whole world slowly died, covered in a black mist...Then I was in a flower field, and this woman in a pink dress told me I had to help stop him, and she'd be there to help us all, too. Then I woke up." She nodded at the conclusion of her story. Tseng gave a longing look, then looked down.

"I saw them both, too..." Cloud's mind flashed to his nightmare. "Look, if he's got a sorceress on his side or...somehow possessing one, we need to-"

The lights went out in the building, the only glimmer of light coming from windows, the beast's tail and Cloud's alert eyes; there were squeals in the room coming from surprised women, including Selphie and a shout from Zell. "Damn. Yuffie, we need to get out of here..."

"Reeve's ahead of ya on that one, Spike. Get the group and we'll meet at the bar."

Cloud frowned. "What? Why? I don't want them involved!"

"They're gonna be involved one way or another, but it's the safest place in Edge!" She turned her head towards Squall in the darkness. "Get your dad, and follow us. We'll do our best to keep you all safe, promise!" She charged towards Godo and Bughe's position with the red beast despite the dark.

Rinoa sighed, using her sorceress magic to make a few orbs of light to keep the dark at bay. "That's better!"

Cloud grunted, wincing. "For everyone else, at least."

"Hey, Squall! Mr. Tuesti told us to come over to you." It was Laguna and Odine. Squall frowned nervously, then unsheathed his gunblade. He felt something in the air...

"We're gonna go for now, yo. See ya soon!" chimed out Reno's voice. A moment later and Tseng disappeared, he and the other two escorting Rufus away from the room.

Cloud looked over towards Yuffie, fighting with the Wutaian leader. Suddenly several crashes came to his ears, and he looked about as shadow creepers had blown through the windows and materialized on the floor of the room. "Yuffie!" He charged into the center of the room, trying to get to the father and daughter as WRO guards and Squall's comrades went to work on a semblance of defense. Godo's guards tried their best, one tearing into a shadow creeper when it was caught by surprise, but another tore the man to shreds as yet another was trampled, pushing Irvine out of the way. The last one actually took down one and fended off another, but the slain one merely reformed behind the guard and finished him off.

Godo sighed. " _So much for my guard_."

" _I'll be your guard, Dad_." Yuffie said, sighing.

The leader of Wutai shook his head. " _No. I will be yours_." He took out his katana, slicing through a beast. He noticed as Bughe took cover with Yuffie's friend, Nanaki; he smiled at his saving act.

" _I don't need one! You're the emperor, ya know_ -" She slashed at one of the beasts with her shuriken. Another one reformed nearby.

Godo swiftly gave his daughter a hug. " _I'll cover you, my little white rose. Wutai needs you alive more than I._ " He pushed her into the approaching Cloud, raising his katana up in a cheer. "Keep her safe, now! I demand it!" Cloud grunted as Yuffie bumped into his chest, and he grabbed her by the arm so she wouldn't do anything desperate.

"Dad!" Yuffie cried out as Cloud dragged her away. Godo held himself proudly, using his katana to slice down shadow creepers and allow others to escape; what guards were left shot through the ethereal beasts until their ammo was spent, the emperor demanding they fall back as he let loose a powerful spirit energy technique that ripped through a crowd of monsters, disintegrating them. He continued on the fight despite the rips and tears into his aged body as the monsters came to nip at him as more reformed, finally being torn apart by two ambushing beasts in front of his daughter while proudly singing the anthem of Wutai; Yuffie screamed, and Cloud turned her around and tucked her under his covered arm effortlessly, holding her shuriken in his other hand.

"We gotta go, now! Rinoa, conjure some of that light to follow us down the stairs. We don't have a lot of time." Cloud was carrying Yuffie as she wailed about, heaving and crying as he made his way towards the bewildered group with a face mixed with determination and sadness. He held onto Yuffie's shuriken firmly, looking about; a creeper attempted to leap on him from the side but he split it in half, dissolving the beast as the edge cleaved into it. Squall covered the other side, slicing and shooting into another of the beasts as it charged. "How do you even use this thing..." He mumbled.

"I'll lead the way." Reeve said as he suddenly appeared, and the group charged out, running down the black hallway as a light orb danced over them. He looked up, grinning at the ball of light. "That's a pleasant trick." Rinoa gave a ghost of a smile at the compliment.

Down the hall they went, the group occasionally fighting off shadow creepers and other, stranger creatures neither world had seen before. Quistis had decapitated one goblin like creature with her whip, Zell smashing another beast with his powerful fists. They made it to the stairwell, bounding down it as swiftly as they could; occasionally a monster would attack in the closed quarters, one trying to swipe at Selphie's back only to be destroyed by a mysterious light coming from Rinoa's hand.

"Thanks, Rinny!" Selphie chimed.

"We have several more floors to go." Reeve said as they made their way towards the next floor. "When we get to the lobby, follow Cloud's lead."

"But where are we going?" Quistis asked hesitantly, looking about for any ambushing creatures.

Cloud heaved a sigh. "My place, unfortunately."

"...Why?" Several voices asked nearby.

"I've asked myself that, too."

Reeve coughed. "It's the next safest place in Edge." They made their way down another floor, hearing screams from above and below. Down they went, hounded occasionally by creepers or monsters as they went further down, Rinoa's orb lighting the area. Reaching the second floor stairwell they hesitated, feeling a heat coming from above and desperate screams. The party looked up, hearing a crackling noise. "The safest place in Edge." Reeve mused.

Growls came from above and the group moved on again, stepping down to the lobby. It was in chaos, survivors running out of the several glass doors opened in front of them as monsters attacked; several from the large group came to the rescue of others as they went to slay the dark beasts. Charging through, they made it halfway before a large beast crashed through the glass, roaring as it stomped victims under its hooves and breathed fire out of its mouth; Rinoa put up a shield to cover the group from the worst of it. Cloud shook Yuffie, the woman still limp.

"Yuffie. We gotta fight."

She sniffled, looking up at him with bloodshot eyes. Cloud looked back, brows furrowed. She looked down a moment, then moved about until he gently let her go to stand on her own. "Always time later..." Yuffie looked up at the fiery bull monster, the hide a deep green glowing with molten fire beneath cracks as Rinoa's lights danced about. Cloud rubbed her back, then patted her shoulder before putting her weapon in front of her eyes. The little ninja grasped her shuriken, anger welling in her. She stood still, focusing on something.

Cloud took out First Tsurugi and one of his longer swords, moving and positioning himself for the fight. He looked over at Squall, and they both nodded at each other before turning to face the twelve foot tall monster as it finished goring its victims. They charged, the beast taking notice and aiming its horns at the two; it charged at them and Squall split its nose while pulling the trigger of his gunblade as Cloud pushed him out of the way of a horn that came in far too quickly, slicing through his right shoulder in the process. With his left hand he sliced the tip of the horn off as it finished arcing through his flesh, then ducking down and moving away from the monster. Cloud grunted, looking back at his ripped shoulder a moment before shakily lifting First Tsurugi again, smashing it into the side of the bull; Squall jabbed the monster in the eye when it went to face him, shattering the socket with a gunshot that splattered liquid fire on to the ground.

It turned, enraged, and started stomping towards Quistis, Irvine and Selphie as they were finishing off some small fry monsters harassing survivors. They turned, surprised at the distance it had closed; as it came up Reeve jumped on top of it and yanked down on the monster's horns and Irvine took the opening to shoot it in the leg, shattering it like exploded bronze. It leaped about, then violently ripped its head to one side and then to another, Reeve flying and smashing into a pillar; the impact was so strong as to crack the stone, and the president of the WRO fell to the ground, limp.

"Oh, shit..." Zell mumbled, staying next to Laguna and Odine as they hid behind some furniture with Bughe; the red beast stood near the martial artist, ready for the bull to charge their way. He eyed the beast and then Cloud and Yuffie; the warrior seemed intent on guarding a focusing Yuffie, a strange light coming from her. The ninja shouted something, and the beast was chilled from the inside, bellowing as the molten core started to freeze, the liquid flame that leaked from its injuries solidifying. Cloud looked over at Rinoa, nodding.

"Think you can finish it?" He shouted.

Rinoa nodded, conjuring icy water to douse the beast, the thing squeaking like a rusty robot as it stumbled about, slowly trying to gore anyone it could; the beast eventually froze, revealing itself as an animated statue. The sorceress looked at the thing wide eyed, then at the still Reeve as flames began to creep from the higher floors down towards them. She gasped.

"Mr. Tuesti!"

Cloud shook his head. "We gotta go!" He made his way towards the exit, Yuffie ushering the rest of the group out into the dark plaza. "Looks like the entire grid is out..." Rinoa's lights followed behind the warrior as the group jogged behind him, making a formation to protect the leaders and scientist from harm. The shouts and screams turned into questioning mumbling as they made their way down the street, Cloud seeing everything perfectly in the darkness in front of him. He looked at his phone to check the time quickly; it was only 9:30pm, the children would still be up and scared. Damn.

Squall made his way towards Laguna's position, and near Rinoa. Laguna shook his head. "Man...They left their employer, just like that! Pretty ruthless." The president mumbled sadly.

Before he could respond he heard a female voice in front of them. "Cloud! Your shoulder..."

"It's not safe out here, Tifa!" Cloud seemed to be ushering a woman into a building as he sheathed his swords.

Yuffie chimed up. "We're at the bar! C'mon, let's get in..."

The ninja stayed outside until everyone had made it in before entering herself and locking the door. Rinoa's light balls brought plenty of illumination to the clean bar; and the group noticed the bartender was a woman about Cloud's age, with long chocolate brown hair, concerned red eyes and a large chest that Irvine immediately eyeballed for a moment.

She looked around. "Where's Reeve?"

"Um...Mr. Tuesti is back at the building..." Selphie said lowly. They really couldn't have taken him, dead or not? Why so casual about such an important leader?

The woman Cloud called Tifa shook her head, then went beyond the counter, a flashlight in her hand; she was heading up some stairs.

Cloud had moved beyond the counter as well, looking about for a rag to wash his bloody shoulder with. Yuffie started to pace, mumbling to her self. "Ohmigawd what're we gonna do...Already had enough casualties last time..."

The red beast approached her, his eye questioning the ninja. She stopped her pacing and looked down at it. "D'you have any bright ideas yet, Nanaki?"

"No, I'm afraid not."

Zell took a step back, several others looking towards the red beast. "Did...he just talk?"

The beast looked back at Zell, grinning. "I talk quite a bit sometimes." He turned towards Yuffie again. "It seems this sorceress entity will complicate things, won't it?" He chuckled, looking towards Rinoa. "Not you, of course."

Rinoa blushed. "I really have no clue what's going on, except something bad is happening, and a man named Sephiroth is behind it."

Cloud stepped out from behind the counter as footsteps made their way down the steps, his hand covering his wound with a bloody rag. "That's the gist of it." He looked about at the group. "Gonna have to spend the night. Is there anyway you can shield the bar just in case, Rinoa?"

Rinoa bit her lip, thinking. "Shield...You mean hide us from that man?" Cloud nodded, and the sorceress stepped towards the front door, her hands out. "I can try. I don't know how well, but I can do something..." She started focusing on something in front of her as her friends began mumbled discussion behind her.

"All of my work, ze portal! I vill have to start from scratch!" Odine grumbled, Laguna putting his arms to his hips and shaking his head.

"I really liked Mr. Tuesti..." His deep green eyes came to Cloud and Yuffie. "Why'd you leave'em like that?" His voice wasn't so much accusatory as it was searching.

"Because it wasn't necessary to collect the body," Came a familiar voice from the stairs. Reeve walked to the counter, putting his elbows down on it. "That was my...body double, after a fashion." He gave a chuckle. "He's alright, we're still in contact."

Rinoa finished whatever she was doing, looking out of breath. "Okay, I think we should be fine. Maybe have a lookout during the night, just in case." Her eyes widened when they came in contact with a perfectly fine Reeve, who merely winked at the girl.

Squall nodded after the surprise. "I can do the first shift, if that's alright." The knight was still full of adrenaline.

The woman came down the stairs, looking at the large group she would host, then back at Cloud with a worried expression. "Cloud, can I talk to you in the garage..." He nodded, moving towards the counter again. The bartender looked at Yuffie. "Could you get them settled down, please?" The ninja nodded, and the woman disappeared into the room Cloud had went in to.

"Guess Tifa wants me to get ya situated. Hm, I guess leaders get the guest room...Reeve, you can show'em!" Yuffie said, flipping her hand.

Reeve nodded, giving the woman a particular look, then motioning with a smile towards a room behind the bar. "It's the living room, but the couches convert. Sorry if it's not very fancy..."

Laguna, Bughe and Odine shuffled behind the counter with him, Laguna scratching the back of his head. "It's cool, I'm sure we'll be fine!"

Yuffie sighed. "Okay...umm...There's several rooms upstairs, but...I need some futons. I'll be right back." She headed into the garage after grabbing Tifa's flashlight, the sounds of Tifa's soft scolding cut short by the door closing. Nanaki chuckled.

"A fine mess this is."

Selphie walked up to the sitting beast and the crouched to his eye level, looking him up and down. "Pretty cool...I guess you know Yuffie pretty well?"

Nanaki grinned. "Cloud, Tifa, Reeve, too. We're all good friends."

Quistis hummed. "So that's why they're so casual around each other. I never expected a chatter box to be friends with such a brooder."

Zell snorted. "You talkin' about Yuffie and Cloud, or Selphie and Squall?" The group of friends chuckled, Squall frowning.

"I'm not brooding..." Not as much anymore, anyway.

Nanaki walked towards a corner of the bar, and curled up. "I'll stay here, in case I am needed."

The door to the garage opened up, the three former occupants holding what appeared to be large, fluffy blankets and pillows. Cloud looked at the group and motioned with his head to follow him, and all but Squall did, starting his shift after a swift kiss from Rinoa; he walked to a chair and sat himself in front of the door to the bar, thinking.

Walking softly, the warrior skipped over a closed door and on to another, one of Rinoa's orbs following him. Cloud opened the door, the room empty. "Sorry we don't have beds yet..." He mumbled apologetically. Cloud placed the futons on the floor, straightening them out and placing pillows on each one. "That's three...Tifa'll put the other ones in the next room."

"Who should go in here?" Selphie chimed.

Cloud shrugged. "You guys can figure out who you wanna sleep with." He stood back up again, swords swaying. He looked at the group in front of him and sighed. "Try to get a good night's sleep. If you need us, we'll be in our room." He pointed towards the end of the hall.

Rinoa's eyes lit up and Cloud frowned. "So...You and Tifa are a couple?"

Cloud said nothing but blushed, then wordlessly left the room. A few moments later the sound of metal moving and then scraping noises hit their ears, then Cloud reappeared; his swords and their harness off his back. "I'll be back." He made his way to a neighboring room, then shut the door.

Quistis frowned. "Didn't he...have a pretty nasty gash on his shoulder?" It was still ugly to look at, but the bleeding had stopped.

Yuffie waved her hands. "There's potions in the kitchen, ya know."

"I dunno how potions could fix it up that much. It'd still bleed, and his wound isn't." Irvine said. "Anyway, I'm goin' in this room over here. Call me when you need a shift!" The sharpshooter shuffled into the other room, taking off his coat and casting it next to his futon.

The others shrugged, sorting out who would sleep where. Yuffie seemed to make her way towards another room altogether, shutting the door behind her; soon the sound of little sniffles could be heard outside the door, Tifa entering quietly. Cloud had finally left the other room, but not empty handed; two children grasped at his sides fearfully. The boy hid himself behind the warrior's leg, but the girl looked about in the magic light at the newcomers, intrigued. She locked eyes with Rinoa and gasped, then charged towards her with Cloud trying to call her back.

"Hey! I saw you in my dream last night!" The girl said.

Rinoa's eyebrows raised above her almond eyes. "Did you?"

The girl nodded. "Yeah! The flower girl said you would help make Sephiroth go away for good."

"Marlene..." Cloud said from behind, holding her shoulder gently.

"Wait..." Rinoa cocked her head. "Who is she?"

Cloud gave her an inquisitive look. "Who are you talking about?" Marlene or...?

"The flower girl."

He lowered his eyes. "Her name is Aerith. She was...is, a dear friend."

Rinoa frowned. "Is she like...a sorceress?"

Marlene piped up. "She lives in the planet!"

Cloud sighed heavily, gently taking Marlene's hand. "We can talk about this later..."

"If there is a later," Quistis chimed. "I still have no idea what's going on."

Cloud shook his head. "We're safe for now. Sephiroth isn't here yet." Before they could barrage him with more questions, he turned to Rinoa. "If you want to fill your friends in with what happened...I need to take them back to bed."

"Maybe we'll get Squall to give us the rundown. He's good at that." Quistis offered.

"Yeah. We'll try not to make too much noise, Cloud, promise!" Rinoa chimed.

Cloud gave her a soft smile. "Alright. Good night." He left the room, and went towards the master bedroom, wondering when he should do a shift during the night.


	4. Chapter 4

Haaaa, finally updated! I chose Finnish for Nibelese because I figured it was isolated enough, would suit the area of Nibelheim, and because I can't find even a bad translator for Sami; they both would have suited the area imo.

* * *

Laguna rubbed his thumbs together, laying on the foldout bed on his back; the room was dark with a small glow coming from about the door. "So, Reeve...You seem to put a lot of trust in your guards."

Reeve shifted in the darkness. "They're dear friends."

Bughe continued to snore, the old lore master conked out from too much excitement in one night. Laguna grinned in the dark, thinking about how Raine would complain about his snoring and sleep talk. "Hm. My two closest advisers are old, dear friends of mine. They're runnin' Esthar while I'm gone. Guess if we don't make it back, they'll have to keep at it..."

Reeve sighed. "I'm sure you'll make it back. I'll have to take a tour of your country someday, if you wouldn't mind."

"If ve get out of zis predicament first!" Odine shuffled about on his bed, trying to get comfortable. "A sorceress on ze rampage here, and none of my suppression inventions vithin reach!"

"Maybe you can make some here, Odine." Laguna offered hopefully.

"We'll think of something." Reeve said, trying to be reassuring. "For now, we should probably rest."

* * *

Squall heard paws coming closer to him, and he looked behind him, Nanaki coming to sit beside him as he looked up at the sorceress' knight. "I was hoping tonight would have been more pleasant."

Squall gave a humorless chuckle. "Yeah. Me too. " he sighed, running a hand through his messy hair. "I have to wonder if we're going to be safe here during the night..."

"Yes. Sephiroth is not that close, not yet. Hopefully the city will be peaceful during the night, however. We spoke of it with Tseng." Nanaki replied.

"Who is he..." Squall muttered, the book he read vague. A madman was how the book described him. What kind of madman can summon a meteor and for what purpose? "Sephiroth, I mean."

The red beast sat quietly for a moment, obviously judging whether to speak. "The son of Jenova. The man in Rinoa's dream. The one who used the Black Materia to summon Meteor, attempting to become a god through the absorption of the Lifestream."

Green cat eyes...Squall's eyes narrowed. "Is Cloud related to him somehow?"

The beast raised a furry brow. "No."

"His eyes turned green and cat like yesterday." Squall said, terribly suspicious.

Nanaki hummed. "I heard about that."

"Would you know why?"

The four legged warrior sighed, giving a tired look. "You should really ask Cloud yourself. It's not my right to divulge his history, but...he's not a risk, if that's what worries you."

Squall looked skeptical. "He's very strange."

"I don't think we'd have him any other way." Nanaki was grinning. "He's defeated Sephiroth several times. Hopefully, this will be the last time we see him."

The knight crossed his arms. "He was in the Jenova War...How much do those books omit?"

"A lot. You probably read one of the more complete books." Nanaki responded. "It was terrible."

"It said that a group fought Shinra and tracked down Sephiroth, and that in the end your planet had to destroy a summoned meteor with a materia and...Lifestream." A well of souls under the ground? A living planet with a will of its own?

The beast chuckled. "Oh, it left out a lot, then. We were a part of that group, if you hadn't deduced that already."

"Mind telling me about it?"

Nanaki laid down. "There are many horrors in the recent past than I would care to remember. Jenova...I heard Reeve spoke of it to you."

The teen hummed, rubbing his thumbs together. "To Laguna and Quistis, after they made sure we weren't like it. But...If Sephiroth is that thing's son..."

"It's a bit complicated. He had a human mother, but when she was pregnant with him a scientist injected the fetus with Jenova cells."

"Why would someone do something like that?" Squall was perplexed by that kind of wanton experimentation. "The book I read said it was mistaken as a woman belonging to another race, but it turned out their assumption was incorrect."

Nanaki gave his best impression of a sardonic smile. "They thought they could make an Ancient, a being that could take Shinra to a place full of Lifestream. 'The Promised Land.' Instead they made a being with great strength, and unfortunately a great will that survived his death. A will so great that he will not dissipate into the Lifestream, one that, four years ago almost killed the planet."

"How could Cloud defeat such a thing..."

The beast chuckled. "He's not exactly a weakling, if you haven't noticed. We were there to help, too."

The teen grunted, thinking. "...Was he in that special project? SOLDIER?"

"...No." Nanaki said in an almost ominous manner.

Squall and Nanaki turned at the sound of creaking steps, Rinoa, Quistis and Selphie appearing in the magical light glowing in the bar. The teen raised a brow, thinking that they would have bedded down for the night. The beast huffed a chuckle. "Can't sleep just yet?"

Quistis gave him a smile. "I don't like being left out of the loop. Obviously Zell and Irvine are too busy sleeping," she rolled her eyes playfully, "but I was hoping Squall could give a basic rundown of what happened." Her friend nodded, and collected his thoughts to tell them, Nanaki ready to help.

* * *

 _'Are you sure we'll be safe here, tonight?'_ Tifa whispered in bed, an arm holding Marlene. The girl looked at Tifa, then at Denzel, giving a consternated look. Cloud and Tifa always talked Nibelese when they didn't want to worry them, but it caused them anxiety nonetheless.

Cloud gave a nod. _'Yeah. He sent those monsters ahead of him.'_

 _'What do we do in the morning?'_

 _'I'm hoping she tells me.'_

"We're gonna be okay, right?" Denzel asked.

Cloud gave the child's shoulder a little squeeze. "Yeah. Don't worry, we'll protect you." he tried reassuring the child, though he was unsure if he was successful. He himself was unsure if he could, but he'd do his damnedest to keep them safe. The warrior looked back into Tifa's eyes, and gave her a gentle smile before attempting to get some sleep; he would take a shift downstairs later.

 _ **"He's comin' your way, y'know," Zack's voice said matter-of-factually.**_

 _ **Cloud sighed, sitting in the familiar flower field. "Yep." He turned his head, peeking at Aerith. "Talking to Marlene and Rinoa?"**_

 _ **The flower girl nodded. "Marlene needs reassurance, don't you think?"**_

 _ **"Yeah. So, how are we gonna stop Sephiroth this time?"**_

 _ **Zack thumped his chest. "We're gonna help ya, man!"**_

 _ **Cloud raised a brow. "...How?" They were dead.**_

 _ **He heard a small laugh behind him. "Just go to your Promised Land. We'll be waiting for you." Aerith said.**_

 _ **The warrior looked away and down. "What is he going to do to me..." That nightmare had him on edge all evening.**_

 _ **"I dunno, but you aren't gonna give up because of a stupid threat, are you?" Zack asked.**_

 _ **Cloud shook his head. "If he makes me hurt my family..."**_

 _ **"We'll be there for you, Cloud." Aerith said reassuringly.**_

 _ **Zack snorted. "It's not like he hasn't lied to you before."**_

 _ **"I know. And I'm grateful. But..."**_

 _ **The flower field disappeared, and he was lying in bed again. Cloud looked around with his eyes, refocusing his sight as the fogginess cleared away. Something cold was laying next to him, and he looked down towards it. Denzel's lifeless eyes looked towards him, his face white with death's pallor. His breath froze as his eyes studied the horrible sight, then looked beyond the boy; Marlene and Tifa were just as dead and pale as Denzel, cold blood coagulated from gory holes in their abdomens. They all had a strange black mist slowly weeping from their bodies.**_

 _ **"This isn't real..." He touched Tifa's face, the woman's cheek cold as ice like a long dead corpse, stale blood pooled in her mouth and pillow. Cloud bit his lower lip, softly shaking her head. He leapt out of bed, looking around in a panic; the warrior charged out of the room and looked about the living space. The rooms were full of death, his new acquaintances just as dead as his family. Peeking into his office, Yuffie was impaled on her shuriken, dried tears still on her cheeks.**_

 _ **"It feels so real, doesn't it, Cloud?" A dark voice whispered.**_

 _ **Cloud looked about defiantly. "But it's not. This is the best you can do, now? Nightmares? You're pathetic, Sephiroth."**_

 _ **"A whelp like you, calling me pathetic? A puppet pretending his lines are not there?" Sephiroth sounded almost angry, the warrior picking up on it.**_

 _ **Cloud sneered. "You're the only puppet here." He walked out of the room, and down the stairs; Sephiroth was there, staring him down.**_

 _ **"I'll show you horrors you've never dreamed of, Cloud."**_

 _ **The warrior closed his eyes, trying to focus on his sleeping body. "This is stupid. Bother me when you actually wanna fight, you coward." He felt the nightmare give way, and he floated downwards, slowly.**_

 _ **"Damn, man." Zack mumbled in the darkness.**_

 _ **"I think you actually hurt his ego a little. You should watch out." Aerith said almost playfully.**_

 _ **"Screw his ego." Cloud said simply.**_

 _ **Zack chuckled. "That's the spirit, Spike! Hey, you should probably wake up now. We'll see you soon, okay?"**_

 _ **"We'll be back, I promise."**_

Cloud slowly opened his eyes, a warm, living Denzel sleeping soundly next to him as his arm draped protectively around the boy. He twisted his head back to look at the clock, then remembered the lights were out until he noticed it blinking "12:00"; the power was back on. Shuffling out of bed as quietly as he could and grabbing his phone, he tiptoed out of the room and checked on the denizens of the darkened rooms, Rinoa's light balls gone. Squall, Rinoa and Quistis slept in one room, and Zell in the other. _'...Irvine and Selphie must have taken a shift.'_

He made his way into the galley, the low lights of the bar on and Nanaki deep in sleep by the garage door; the warrior looked about, Irvine and Selphie looking at him and giving him a wave that he returned. After a few minutes he came to the front of the bar after starting the coffee maker, deciding it would be the prudent thing to do. "Mornin'...You haven't been down here too long, I hope?"

They shook their heads. "I was about to wake up Zell to give him a turn." Irvine said.

Cloud gave a weak smile, surprising the two. "I can take it from here, guys. Thanks for watching over the bar."

"Selphie smiled back. "No problem!" She cocked her head playfully. "You're not as big a grump as I first thought." Irvine shook his head, hand covering his face.

The warrior chuckled, walking towards the galley again. "Guess I feel better about you guys." He looked at his cellphone, it was a bit past four in the morning. "You should get some more sleep while you can."

A couple of hours later and the large group congested the front of the bar, Tifa fixing up something the inter-dimensional travelers would eat; she was informed by Cloud when she awoke an hour later that they didn't like the usual, basic breakfast that was common in Edge. She settled on lunch for breakfast, making fried rice to sate everyone's appetite by the time they were all up.

Denzel and Marlene cautiously walked down the stairs dressed, eyeing the new people. They went to sit next to Cloud, the man nursing his bowl; he looked up at them and gave a soft smile they returned. Tifa moved two bowls to them, and started digging into her own as the children picked up their chopsticks.

"How come they aren't using sticks?" Denzel asked; the strangers were using spoons.

Tifa spoke up. "They don't know how to, sweetie."

"Marlene frowned. "How come?"

"...Remember when I said they're from faraway? I meant they're not from here. This isn't their world." Cloud said before eating more of his meal. The children looked back, gawking. One of them noticed, giving a wave back.

"It's rude to stare..." Tifa said. Looking back at Cloud, she whispered to him. _"Did she...talk to you?"_

Cloud nodded. _"The church. She said they'd be there."_

The bartender frowned. _"They?"_

 _"Zack and Aerith. I don't know, it was kind of cryptic."_

She was giving him a funny look. "If you say so."

Yuffie picked at her bowl, obviously lost in her thoughts as she stared at a piece of chicken jutting out of the mound of rice. The others were talking here and there about last night's misadventure or their uneventful lookout shifts. Rinoa was speaking about her newest dream to Squall, the teen holding a more serious look on his face than usual.

"Yuffie?" It was Selphie. The ninja looked towards her, a brow raised. "Are you okay?"

"...Yeah. I guess last night really took it's toll on me." She took a bite of her meal, lowering her gaze.

Selphie patted her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Yuffie." She had seen what happened last night.

The ninja gave a small smile. "Thanks." She sighed, tapping her bowl with her sticks. "...I guess I'm the new leader of Wutai, now."

The teen knew they were related, but she didn't know Yuffie was the next in line to a throne. "Um, I guess that means you gotta be guarded, huh?"

Yuffie let out a sincere laugh. "As if. I'm more than capable by myself."

"If you say so. But we'll have your back, anyway!" Selphie said with a smile.

The ninja swirled her rice. "Yeah. We all have each other's backs." She looked over, Quistis telling Zell what could possibly be going on; obviously someone had brought up Aerith during the night. Cloud or Nanaki? She looked towards Squall, the man holding a stony expression as his father and Rinoa sat next to him. He was dismissing himself from the table, bowl in hand as the rest finished up, stopping to meet Tifa and Cloud.

"So...Where are we going?" He asked the two, a brow raised.

Cloud sighed, head resting on a hand. "We're going to the church in the Midgar Ruins. From there, we'll see."

Tifa gave a tired smile. "Just going one step at a time, um..."

"Squall." He frowned. "The church?"

Cloud nodded, not looking at the teen. He looked up, Squall still waiting on a proper answer. "Some friends might be there that can help."

"You mean the flower girl, Cloud?" Marlene inquired, peeking past Denzel.

"Yeah." He looked back at Squall. "The woman in Rinoa's dreams."

The teen nodded as he went to put his bowl in the sink. He turned to Tifa, giving a nod. "Thank you." The woman nodded back with a smile, then turned back to Cloud, whispering something to him again.

Cloud, Tifa, Rinoa and Squall made their way towards the plaza, having left the others to guard the bar. The blonde warrior was obviously on alert, the noise of many people and the media becoming audible as they came ever closer. Tifa looked back towards the bar, obviously worried about the children despite the security within. She looked at Cloud with worrisome eyes, and he met hers with that hint of concern only she would notice.

 _"Do you think they'll be alright?"_

 _"I think so."_

Tifa hummed, then looked about the nearly empty street. As they reached the bend a mass of people could be seen crowding around the burnt out WRO building, the media flashing their cameras and making news stories. "Is it safe for them to be so close to the building?"

Squall sighed. "Probably not. Looks like people in general don't change much between dimensions..."

Cloud snorted. "That's oddly reassuring." He looked about, then motioned to walk across the road and towards a large monument. "This way. We can avoid the crowd."

They followed behind their guide, eyeing the crowd before passing by the monument. Rinoa looked up at it, blinking. "What's this?"

Tifa looked back at her, then towards the monument. "Meteorfall Monument. It's supposed to be a memorial for everyone that didn't make it..."

"Oh..." Rinoa responded lowly.

Tifa moved to the sorceress' side, and gently held her shoulder. "It's okay. Things ended up how they ended up, and we just go on with our lives."

Squall looked up at the monument, wondering why they couldn't have made a more uplifting statue; in the end he decided that perhaps they wanted to keep the image fresh in the minds of the denizens of the city, like a warning. Looking back, he noticed a strange creature sneaking towards Cloud's leg from behind the monument as the man passed. "Watch out!"

Cloud immediately turned around, looking about for the danger as First Tsurugi flashed out of his sheath as the others prepared their battle stances. "What?"

"Och! Laddy, dinnae have somewhere t'gae?"

The warrior relaxed as he looked down, snorting. "Cait Sith." He picked up the cat like creature, letting it ride his back. "Thanks for the assist last night."

The cat waved at the three others, grinning. "It wae nothin'! Hey, laddy with thae grumpy face! Ye an' yer girl did a good number on that bull, dinnae?"

Rinoa blinked. "Um...What?"

"You were there?" Squall said, trying to remember if he'd seen the creature before.

Cait Sith nodded. "Ah was wearin' Reeve tha night."

Tifa giggled. "Cait Sith is a robot that's connected to Reeve. He has an AI, but sometimes Reeve interacts actively through it."

Squall looked over at the woman as they slipped through another path. "Oh. So, Reeve's watching us now."

"Yep! We have a link with the bar."

They continued on quietly, Tifa or Cloud occasionally answering a question about the city here and there. When was it built, how it developed, when they moved there. Rinoa became more relaxed around the couple, and she gave Tifa a searching look. "So...How'd you two get together?"

Tifa almost turned the same shade as her eyes, and Cait Sith was stiffling a giggle. Cloud said nothing, but the girl noticed his ears were red. Squall sighed.

"Rinoa..."

The woman bit her lip and played with a strand of her chocolate brown hair. "Um, we knew each other since we were kids, and um...we went through a lot together. I guess you could say adversity brought us close."

"Oh, so childhood friends who became lovers! That's so cute!" Rinoa chimed.

Tifa's eyes widened. "N-no, it's not quite like that..." It was obvious the subject made her uncomfortable.

"...We adventured together. Without her, I wouldn't have made it." Cloud said quietly.

Rinoa nodded. "Squall and I went through a lot, too. I guess when you're close to someone else and get to see them under pressure, get to talk to them alone, when you have to depend on them...it brings you close."

Cloud looked back a moment, a ghost of a smile on his face. "Yeah. It does."

After some time they reached the edge of the ruins, vast and mangled. "...Well, we're almost there." Cloud said flatly, continuing on his way. Tifa picked up on his anxiety, walking to his side as they moved towards the shadow of the plate, cast despite the overcast sky. The five looked towards the northern sky, noticing darker clouds gathering from the sea; they instinctively knew they were running out of time.

"So...this Sephiroth guy...what's his problem?" Rinoa asked.

Cloud looked back a moment. "He doesn't like to stay dead."

"Nanaki said as much last night." Squall said.

"How much did he tell you?"

The teen shook his head. "Not enough. Just how Sephiroth came about. I don't know much more than that, and that you were part of the group that stopped him."

Cloud nodded as he looked in front of him. "I see." He paused. "I guess you're still curious."

"It'd be nice to know more..." Squall pressed; he hated not knowing the whole story, that could leave out valuable knowledge.

The warrior sighed. "Sephiroth was the greatest of warriors in SOLDIER. One day, he went crazy and burned down our hometown."

Rinoa looked at the back of Cloud's head wide eyed. "How was he stopped?"

Cloud shook his head. "...It doesn't matter."

Tifa bit her lip as they approached a large, mostly intact building. "Ehkä meidän pitäisi kertoa heille lisää?"

Cloud looked at her with a wary face. "Myöhemmin." he said quietly. Looking back at his two companions from another world, he nodded. "We're here."

"This is the church?" Squall asked, judging the dilapidated building.

"Mhm. This used to be the Sector Five slums, before Meteorfall. The church has a spring of healing water inside." Tifa offered as Cloud opened up the door.

Walking inside, the church was awfully quiet besides the footsteps of the four and the sound of flowing water. The atmosphere felt somewhat different to the warrior in the grey light of the mid-morning, as if the air itself was about to give birth to something.

"Where are they..." Cloud whispered, his face becoming despondent.

Rinoa looked about, then walked up to the pool of water situated in the back of the church. She crouched down, looking into the clear waters. "There's a lot of magic here..." The sorceress put the tips of her fingers into the pool, and suddenly felt consciousness slip somewhere else; just like in her dream.

"Rinoa?" Squall looked over at her, seeing her crouched by the pool. "...Are you alright?" He swallowed, remembering what she said in her dream...No, it was a premonition; he took out his gunblade and faced the door.

Tifa looked at him with a concerned frown. "What is it, Squall?"

"This is what happened in Rinoa's dream...there's gonna be monsters swarming in here next." He hoped it wasn't true, but the sound of groans and screeches came from outside, distant at first but quickly closing in.

Cloud took out First Tsurugi and one of his longer swords. "Anything else happen in that dream?"

Before Squall could respond, the church doors burst open; what stood in front of them weren't ordinary monsters but what looked to be partially mutated humans. Some were partially charred, some cut up and rearranged, tentacles pushed out of mouths and claws instead of fingers. "What the hell...?" These were corpses from last night.

One leapt at the teen, and was immediately torn in two with the explosion of the gunblade's trigger. Tifa pummeled another that thought her weak, followed by another; she grasped the second challenger and smashed it into the other, hard and then kicked it in the center of its mass and into a stone pillar.

Cloud charged at a particularly large challenger, the creature obviously amalgamated from several victims. It screamed as he dug one of his blades into it, and he narrowly dodged a tentacle meant for his heart. Cait Sith held on for dear life, but seemed to be focusing on something in its hand. A moment later and the creature was burning, the warrior retreating a few feet before starting his work on it again.

Squall slashed into one of its several clawed arms, slicing it off as he dodged another beast that leaped into the air, Tifa clocking it in the face as it approached her. She looked over towards Cloud, the man breathing heavily; something was wrong. "Cloud!"

He looked back at her, but his face was confused, his eyes those hard green slits she remembered from before, when Cloud wasn't Cloud. He didn't attack, but simply stood there, as if unsure what he was seeing. "Tifa...I don't know who..."

* * *

 _ **Rinoa felt herself gently fall face first into the darkness, and then into a green, glowing stream of mumbling voices. It was soothing and so very peaceful to the sorceress. But where was everyone else? No...Her dream told her what would happen, what to do. She had to hurry. Rinoa reached out to the Lifestream, feeling the energy course about and through her.**_

 _ **"You're here." said a feminine voice.**_

 _ **"Not a moment too soon, either!" said a playful, masculine voice.**_

 _ **Rinoa smiled. "I guess we're gonna meet for real..." She focused on the stream, pulling out the voices.**_

 _ **The female voice giggled. "Yes. Oh, I hope Cloud can hold on long enough, until we get there."**_

 _ **"Is he in trouble?" The sorceress tugged some more, shapes taking form from beautiful green streams; human shapes holding her hands. The dream showed those terrible eyes, but she didn't think it was really going to happen.**_

 _ **"Sephiroth's trying to mess with his head again." The male said, not amused. "Don't worry, we'll help ol' Spike."**_

 _ **Rinoa pulled more, and felt herself float upwards towards the black oblivion she came from, then heard the babbling of the pool as she moved ever closer to her body. Suddenly she felt a dark presence pool over her connection to her body, cutting her off from the others as dark laughter flooded her mind. "Sephiroth...?"**_

 _ **"...You can't interfere, little sorceress."**_

 _ **She could hear the sounds of the battle just above the pool of water, Tifa's pleading and Squall's grunts as he fought. Cloud was saying something inaudible as a chorus of monstrous screeches tried to drown the human sounds out.**_

 _ **"Rinoa."**_

 _ **"Hm?"**_

 _ **"Use your power. They need us up there."**_

 _ **Sephiroth's darkness surrounded her, but Rinoa turned inward towards that inner light that glowed in her chest. She focused on it, hoping it could light the way...**_

* * *

Cloud wasn't sure what was happening. One second he was fighting a large monstrosity, the next he was slicing through a person. His head hurt and his eyes burned as he looked over to where his comrades were; they were gone, replaced with more monsters. He shook his head, a throb threatening to make him forget everything that happened in the last few moments.

He felt something grasping at his shoulder and he tore it off and to the floor, it babbled like the rest of the monsters, monsters devouring and killing the people amassed at the door of the church. The warrior lifted his swords defensively, looking back and forth. _'What is this? Where is everyone? Where's Tifa?'_

"Tifa!"

A gargling scream came out of one of the monsters as it whipped a person into the wall of the church, the thing trying to speak. It came closer, and he brought himself into a fighting position. The monster paused, softly murmuring to itself, or maybe to him, he wasn't sure.

"Tifa...Where are you?"

It murmured again before smashing itself into an approaching person, using it to knock down a group of innocents. What were they here for? Did they need the healing waters here, or...why was he here? This thing was hurting people. Cloud grimaced before charging the thing, and it tried to jump back as he brought his sword down to kill it before it harmed more people. It screamed, and it almost sounded like his name.

His sword hit something hard and metallic, and another monster had parried with its giant hand claw. Blue eyes glowered at him, and it yelled things at him. Cloud shook his head. They weren't trying to kill him, why? A terrible pain went through his shoulder and he instinctively pulled his weapon away and towards the mass that layed upon him; he cut it though and he looked in horror as he split a child in two, making him freeze.

"Cl...oud."

That other monster he almost tore apart was holding him now, from behind, pulling him away, and he stiffened. Why was a child biting him, but this thing wasn't? What the hell is going on? Who said his name? "Let me go..." he growled.

"Cloud..."

He turned around to look at the creature. Ruby eyes pierced his own, and he looked back to see another monster standing still by the water's edge, spidery wings grazing the floorboards. Cloud looked forward again, the other creature again fighting the mass of people...Was this a Jenova construct, trying to merge him with it, to use him against his friends? He came here with others, didn't he? He couldn't move his arms, he was pinned. His brows knitted together as he struggled, confused. Only one person knew how to pin his arms properly and-"

"Tifa, is that you?"

The monster softly let go of his arms and seemed to murmur something again.

"So this is what he was going to do." Cloud felt his rage increasing; the coward was going to use illusions to make him kill his friends, the revenant had no physical connection to him since the day his Geostigma was cured. Sephiroth could enter his dreams and thoughts, but it would take something like this to get him to do his bidding.

The other creature angrily shouted something, and Cloud looked at the mass of humans, staring at them. Something slipped out of place on them; he lifted his swords and went to work on them, closing his eyes as his swords came down to block out the sight of the massacre he was committing.

 _ **'You're killing your friends, Cloud.'**_

 _ **'Go to hell, Sephiroth.'**_

 _ **'Everything you cherish. I hope you kissed your family good bye before leaving them.'**_

Horrible laughter filled Cloud's head as he killed another illusion. He dropped his swords and held his head, feeling several creatures biting his neck and shoulders; his last thoughts going to the children he left at the bar with these things running around-

The last thing the warrior saw was light flooding everything despite his closed eyes.


	5. Chapter 5

Yuffie ruffled Denzel's hair as she sat in Cloud's office chair, the boy worried. "You guys are safe here with Aunt Yuffie watchin' the place!"

He frowned. "I'm worried about Cloud and Tifa. Marlene said monsters were coming after them in her dream."

The ninja creased her brows. "It was just a dream, Denzel..."

"She's been dreaming about a lot of things that happened."

Selphie and Quistis came into the office, peeking in worriedly. "Hey, Yuffie?" Selphie started, looking about the sparse room. "The radio's been saying that there were attacks in the...plaza?"

Denzel looked from them to Yuffie, fearful. The ninja stood up from the chair and peeked out the window, noticing some pedestrians running off from that direction, but not much else. She turned around and walked past the two women frowning and then went down stairs; the rest of the group was huddled there, listening.

"Reeve! Where's Cloud?"

The man put a hand to his forehead. "Almost at the church."

She bit her lip. "See anything weird yet?"

Reeve shook his head. "No, a lot of media in front of the WRO building, however. Or there was, when..."

Yuffie nodded. "Right. Right...Okay...So there's attacks in the plaza, huh?"

"That's what the radio was saying." he sighed. "There's interference, so it's getting harder to understand."

She looked around at the group again, her senses screaming at her. "Get the kids down here, Reeve. I gotta get something in the garage." Her voice was deadly serious and quiet, different from her usual loud and obnoxious persona. She walked towards the garage, rustling being heard after a few minutes. Reeve quickly made his way upstairs, asking the two whispering women to help him corral the two children who had returned to their bedroom.

"Uncle Reeve, are you gonna take us downstairs?" Marlene asked as soon as he opened the door.

He nodded. "Aunt Yuffie thinks it would be best." he said in his most comforting voice.

The girl nodded and stood up, taking Denzel's arm. "I hope Cloud and Tifa come back soon."

"Me too."

The group came into the galley as Yuffie walked up, carrying a box to the counter and placing it down. "So, you aren't from here and like, we need you guys to have a little more power." She opened the box, and a glowing mass of colorful orbs greeted the large group. "This is materia. It's mine, but you can borrow it for now!"

Selphie squealed. "Oh, I read up on them! They're little balls of that Lifestream stuff, and they let you do magic!"

Yuffie nodded, giving a small, nervous smile; they were running out of time. "Yeah, a lot of them do! Some help without actively focusing on it, some make others work better, and still others let you do things you thought you couldn't, or summon great beings." The ninja took a few out and placed them into her shuriken, replacing the ones she had earlier, then adding a few to her armlet. "You don't have slots on your weapons, but you can either put them in an armlet or hold them when you need to use them."

Laguna scratched his head, then tentatively took a green orb into his hand. A whisper formed in his mind: Heal. "Heal...I best stay to the back and help however I can, huh?"

Bughe chuckled, taking another green ball. "I think we both should." He looked down at Nanaki. "Which do you want? These are dire times."

Quickly the group set about distributing the materia, occasionally hearing ominous sounds from outside. A scream here, a gurgle there. Eventually a scratching noise made its way to the door, and the group tensed.

"Remember, everyone...use the materia when you absolutely have to. Overuse causes mental fatigue." Reeve said in a wary voice.

Zell came to the front of the bar, preparing himself. "These purple materia almost make me feel like I have a Guardian Force in me." he mumbled to Quistis.

The woman nodded. "Not quite the same, but they're hopefully going to give us the edge we need..."

Irvine cocked his gun, aiming towards the shuddering door. "So, guys...What do we do if we have to retreat? There's a garage so I'm assuming there's transportation..."

Yuffie snorted. "Only Cloud's bike, sorry. But, I have a plan..." She looked down at the children. "You two, go hide in the garage." A loud thump echoed through the bar as the children ran off, putting the ninja further on edge.

Nanaki growled. "This is it...they smell terrible..." His tail twitched from side to side.

The door burst open with a loud crack, and the group began their defense; the monsters amalgamated corpses howling for their flesh as Irvine blasted a head off and Nanaki assaulted a thorny arm. A barrage of magic shot forward, Selphie whooping as she connected with a creature attempting to wiggle through, impaled on magic ice.

"Materia's easier than I thought it was gonna be!"

A few more slipped through as they cracked the door frame, Zell or Quistis making easy work of the small fry. But there was an obvious wave of monsters pressing through, and the walls surrounding the bar's door wouldn't hold up much longer. Nanaki used his Sled Fang to push back the largest of interlopers, ripping through flesh and bone with a swift movement. He bounced back into the bar after looking about, a semi-circle of monsters closing in on him.

"The road is completely infested. All those people..." His eye showed fear and anger, then turned as they began to tear into the bar again as they ripped at the door, widening their entrance. Looking back, he nodded. "I think we should take our leave."

Irvine sent out several shots as they retreated behind the counter, and then Yuffie threw an object in the midst of the monsters; after a few moments a thick mist enveloped the bar as the party escaped to the garage.

"Damn!" Quistis whipped at a claw pushing the garage doors open, the metal dented by angry fists and claws. Irvine and Zell watched the door they came through after it was shut, and Selphie knocked another mutated hand away with her nunchuku. Quistis looked back at the ninja, slightly panicked. "What's the plan?"

Yuffie looked around, tossing a strange object that seemed to electrocute the hands that were tearing into the garage metal. "Marlene, Denzel? Come on out." The noise from the banging and howling grew louder, and the group quickly converged as the first monster ripped its head through the weakened metal of the garage doors.

* * *

All Cloud could see was white, he was floating in white light for what felt like forever. After an impossibly long time, voices began to make their way to his ears.

"...Nanaki said _he_ wasn't a threat."

"He shouldn't be...what happened to you, Cloud...?" The warrior weakly grunted at the gentle voice, so close to his face...

"Och, laddy! wake up, we dinnae got time fer a nappy!" Something was poking his chest.

"Oh, Tifa. It's not quite what you think." His fingers twitched.

Boots clomped towards him. He felt he was laying on something hard. "Spike's always getting himself into trouble!"

Cloud slowly, painfully opened his eyes. "I'm not tryin' to." His sight settled on two blue eyes on a grinning face, crowned with ebony spikes cascading down his head. Cloud smiled tiredly, raising an arm towards his best friend. Zack took it, and helped him stand again.

He looked around, his eyes no longer burning. Tifa was hugging the life out of Aerith, Zack was grinning like a madman at him and rustling his hair, and Squall was eyeing him suspiciously as Rinoa rolled her eyes, holding Cait Sith. The warrior nodded at the teen. "...Thanks for saving Tifa."

Squall looked taken aback by the sincere gratitude, then returned the nod. "You could thank me by telling me what the hell happened."

Cloud stiffened, shaking his head. "It wasn't what he could do before...it was an illusion. A trick. You looked like monsters trying to kill a bunch of normal people, and I couldn't...I was confused..." He rubbed his eyes with a hand, sighing heavily.

"...Before?"

Rinoa hummed. "Oh. Sounds like sorceress magic to me."

"It was." Aerith said, walking towards the group with Tifa. "Well, we're here, just like we said!" She gave Cloud a hug, the warrior slowly returning it as if she was some fragile apparition that could dissolve at any moment.

"Aerith, Zack...thank you." Cloud frowned, trying to remember something...His eyes widened and he looked at Tifa. "The bar! He sent those things to the bar!"

Tifa gasped and began to run past the group, kicking away dead monsters. "The kids!" The group quickly pushed themselves through the dead mounds of monsters, leaving the church behind as quickly as they could. There were creatures here and there in the ruins, but became more and more numerous as they pushed closer to the plaza.

"Damn. What happened to these people...?" Squall asked, but he worried he knew the answer already.

Cloud sighed as he sliced through another beast, Zack smashing another one with the Buster Sword he acquired in the church. "It's Sephiroth's fault. I'm really not sure, but...he's only affecting the dead, I hope."

"I hope so too, Spike!" Zack said as he playfully cut down another creature. "Last thing we need is you ending up like them."

Cloud groaned at his friend. "Yeah..." He charged another beast, Zack next to him; he couldn't help but crack a smile as they both whittled the thing down together.

Aerith rolled her eyes. "Those don't do anything anymore."

"Wait, you're infected?" Squall asked.

"A lot of people are infected with Jenova cells, though they're dead." the warrior responded cryptically. Of course, he didn't want to divulge at that those who had Geostigma and were cured had dead J-Cells that were slowly purged from the body. Not yet, at least, considering the trouble they were in. But Cloud, as fortune would have it, had S-Cell DNA melded to his own from his stint in a mako vat and all the mako that was running through his body at the moment; the WRO lab stated his blood serum was half mako to his surprise. Why he hadn't grown a third arm or Gaia forbid a wing, he didn't know.

Cloud assisted Tifa with a particularly troublesome monster before glancing over at Cait Sith, the robot sending a plume of fire into a monster as he rested in Rinoa's arm. "Cait Sith, how is the bar?"

The cat looked over, frowning. "There was a scratchin' at the door, laddy, but I cannae hear my good friend right now!"

Cloud bit his lip and began to press harder into the creatures, his mind on the verge of panic. _'Everything you cherish...I'll take it away...!'_ He clenched his jaw and used his spirit energy to slice a short path through the monsters using Blade Beam, angrily swinging through to get a way into the plaza. The others helped, Squall taking out a particularly large and ugly beast with a Renzokuken and soon the sound of quick gunshots made their way to the party's ears.

A wave of bullets barraged the creatures in front of them, and they were soon met by a very angry and determined looking man, tall, muscular and dark skinned, sporting cornrows and a strange cannon for a hand. Rinoa looked him up and down, hoping he was perhaps a friend. A moment later the stranger waved, beckoning them to him. "Spiky, the hell you've been?!"

"Barret..."

Barret looked behind him and immediately locked eyes with Aerith. She waved at him as she walked forwards, and found herself in a crushing bear hug. "...How're you here...?" he whispered in her ear.

"With help from our new friends, Barret. It's good to see you again." she replied, smiling.

"Barret, the bar is under attack..." Tifa said, moving forward with Squall and Rinoa.

He looked towards her, tense. "They ain't touchin' my Marlene!" Barret let out another barrage of bullets, the group moving out of the way and then cutting through whatever was left standing afterwards. Tifa quickly introduced her old friend to the newcomers, though leaving out a few small details; names were all that was needed right now.

"I hope you didn't leave those kids by themselves!"

Cloud snorted, looking angrily at Barret. "I'm not stupid! Yuffie, Nanaki, Reeve and their friends were there, too." He waved a hand at Squall and Rinoa before smashing First Tsurugi into a particularly ugly beast; Squall leaped and lopped off its head with a shot of his gunblade.

Barret shook his head. "Yuffie ain't gonna make a dent in these numbers!"

"Good thing my friends are there, too." Squall said dryly as he hacked at another monster.

Rinoa focused on her sorceress powers and weaved it through her hand, a holy fire incinerating a small mass that was blocking their way; the bar was almost in their sights now, the road much clearer.

"Damn! What kinda materia you got, girl?" Barret inquired as they ran down the road. She blushed, but didn't give an answer.

"We're almost there!" Tifa chimed.

Cloud pushed himself as hard as he could, slicing through any lingering opposition that thought it wise to attack. He was filled with anxiety, and he could feel it coming from the others, too. His family, their friends, everyone was hoping they were safe, the bar was safe.

He froze as he came to the front of the bar, his blood running cold as he came to the caved in front wall of Seventh Heaven. Cloud looked about desperately as the others swiftly approached, then leaped into the large hole, looking about for someone, anyone that could still be there. Zack followed behind him, a concerned frown on his face.

"Oh, no..." Rinoa whispered as she examined the damage to the bar. A pile of corpses partially plugged the gaps torn into the walls by claws and bony extremities. She crawled inside as Squall followed her protectively, both apprehensive and worried; the bar was cloaked in silence.

Tifa was next to them now, Barret charging up the stairs while screaming for Marlene. Her eyes were distant, as if lost in a memory; the sorceress went to touch her shoulder, jolting the bartender out of her thoughts and bringing her ruby orbs to meet Rinoa's dark, almond eyes. "I'm okay, Rinoa...thank you. They might have left..." She was obviously trying to be optimistic.

"Ah still cannae hear me old man!" Cait Sith squeaked with dismay. "I dinnae think he's dead, but it'd be nice if he could just say somethin'!"

"Sephiroth is probably interfering as best he can," Aerith said as she looked about. "do your cell phones work?"

Tifa took hers out, and tried to call Yuffie's number. Nothing. "Ah..." She tried calling Cloud's, still nothing. "Nothing..."

Barret shouted Marlene's name from the second floor, finding no one. He came down the stairs with a despondent look upon his face, his hopes crushed. Cloud appeared out of the garage, his face unreadable but his eyes unfocused; he looked down at the area near the cash register, something glimmering out of a tipped box...

"They aint upstairs! Cloud, is there any sign of 'em in the garage?" Barret asked desperately.

"The garage is completely trashed." he sighed, crouching to examine the box's contents. Cloud grunted, looking it over; slim pickings. "Yuffie equiped them with materia..."

"Huh?"

Cloud picked up the box and placed it on the counter. "I think they're still alive. Look, most of the materia is gone..." He doubted the monsters took it; almost all the summons were here along with a few other orbs they might have a use for, maybe. He picked up a red orb, examining it warily.

Rinoa cocked her head, coming close to examine the baubles. "So this...this let's you use magic?"

Barret snorted. "You got some, don't ya?"

She blushed. "Um, no..."

The dark skinned man looked her up and down with a hard expression. "Then how'd you use magic like that?"

Tifa sighed, a hand on her eyes. "Reeve didn't tell you..."

He snapped his head towards the bartender. "Tell me what?!"

The woman explained their story as Cloud pocketed the dangerous materia that was left, socketing four into his bracer as a precaution, two purples and a red connected to a blue. He looked at Rinoa, his expression dour; he reached his closed hand out to her, and she brought her hand to his. Something warm fell into her hand, and the sorceress brought it to her eyes: materia. She was finally holding the knowledge of the Ancients.

"This...Bahamut...Bahamut is in here." she mumbled to herself.

Cloud nodded. "He's not the only one. The books talk about mental fatigue, but summons can do a number on you." He handed another to Squall, the teen taking it. "You'll both have to use them by hand, looks like our bracers are gone..."

"...Enemy Skill...?"

"Yeah. Get accustomed to the magic in there, it's an extremely useful materia."

Squall nodded, pocketing the orb. "Thanks."

Barret was yelling, Tifa was telling him to shut up, and Cloud groaned. "Look. The garage was torn apart, but I think they escaped somehow. Aerith would have said something if they died, and there was no blood or...body parts."

Rinoa blinked. "Is it because of the Lifestream...?"

"Kinda. Aerith was a Cetra, so she probably would have heard their voices..instead of Barret's right now." He glared towards his noisy friend.

"Wha'do we have here?" came a drawling, lazy voice. Cloud looked towards the entrance and sighed.

"Reno."

The Turk gave a two finger salute and approached the counter with Rude next to him. "Looks like those things did a number on your bar, man." He looked towards Aerith and Zack, the two waving and the Turk raising his brows. "Sight for sore eyes, but we can catch up later."

Rude coughed behind him. "They're beginning to move to north Edge."

Cloud pursed his lips. "Survivors?"

Reno shrugged. It seemed uncaring to the two aliens, but to the those that knew him well enough it was a sign of agitated uncertainty. "We don't know. Been hiding out on this street and they seem disinterested in anything that's not movin' out on the street, yo." He waved his hand. "And here, of course."

Tifa walked towards Cloud. "Where did you hide?"

"Classified, yo."

Barret shook his fist menacingly. "It don't matter where they hidin', we need to find my Marlene!"

Rinoa nodded. "We have to find the others..."

"...Maybe you can track them?" Rude offered quietly. She blushed at the suggestion, the Turk shrugging. "You have a power, why not use it?"

Squall sighed. "Where we're from, sorceresses aren't looked upon kindly."

"Why not?" Tifa asked.

Rinoa turned her head to look at her new friend. "A lot of sorceresses aren't very good people."

"You seem pretty nice, though." Zack offered. "You're not on your world, so it's not like people are gonna care. They'll probably think you have some bad-ass materia!"

Aerith nodded. "Yep. A blank slate."

"A blank slate..." Rinoa whispered. She closed her eyes and focused, trying to find her friends; she concentrated on the familiar energy of Selphie, attempting to find her. The darkness of her eyelids gave way to a vision of a flat place...an airport of some sort? Her friends came into view one by one, from a sewer.

The vision warped, the group fighting monsters and slowly losing and being consumed by the virus as the northern skies grew black with a million shimmering feathers of darkness. A green cat eye watched her, and laughter ripped into her brain again. _**"You can't save them."**_

She grimaced and doubled over, pushed back. "They came out of a sewer, it looked like an airport or something...flat, and monsters coming from the south, darkness from the north." Squall held her as she gasped for air. "He's watching..."

Cloud bit his lip, looking at the group. "That's the WRO airfield to the north. Maybe we can pincer the monsters..."

Reno tsked. "It's several city blocks away, yo."

Rude grunted. "There's a truck outside of our hideout."

"That's for escortin' the president."

"And Tseng said our main priority is assisting Strife."

Reno shrugged. "Alright, partner." He looked at the others and motioned with his head. "Let's go on this suicide mission."

Cloud nodded. "Thanks."

"Thankin' Shinra..." Barret mumbled as Tifa grumbled at him to cut it out as they walked out of the ruined bar and up the street. A truck with just enough room for the group was resting outside a detective agency, Cloud familiar with the owners.

"Is Vits alright?" Cloud asked slyly.

Reno raised his hand flippantly. "Pissed we're stayin' there but-" He turned angrily towards the smirking warrior before entering the driver's seat, pointing his finger at him. "That wasn't fair, yo!"

Rude was trying to hide his small smile as he entered the passenger seat, the others entering the back quickly. "Hold on, Reno drives like a maniac."

"Please don't." Cloud said, despite there being no choice in the matter. He felt the truck lurch as the Turk floored the vehicle, and the warrior waved back and forth in an effort to keep his breakfast where it belonged. "Ugh."

Squall looked about, the streets of the scrap built city almost deserted. "Cloud."

The warrior brought his gaze to the knight. "Hm?"

"...You said a lot of people are infected with those cells. Including you."

Cloud nodded. "I'm gonna assume it's a secondary infection, the first one...they're dead cells." He looked away. "I would think it started in the WRO building, and I'm hoping it's just taking advantage of the recently dead." He took a deep breath, waving back and forth a little more desperately.

Rinoa blinked. "How can you be so sure?"

Tifa interrupted. "It's a long story, we can talk about it later."

Squall frowned. "But earlier, in the church-"

"Look...when we get a chance to sit down, I'll talk. He can't control me anymore." Cloud said in quiet voice. "There's a link, but it's not the same."

Aerith nodded, the flower girl holding Cait Sith in her lap. "It's true. Sephiroth isn't very happy about it, though." she said with a soft smile. The Cetra looked over at Squall and Rinoa with her serene green eyes. "Sephiroth is powerful, but he overestimates himself, or underestimates his opponents. Just remember, he's not a god, as much as he'd like to pretend he is."

The couple nodded, Rinoa rolling the red materia in her hand. "How can we stop him, though?"

"Get him to finally fragment into the Lifestream. He already purged his memories of when he was a man, so, we have to dissolve him here and there." Aerith said, looking up at the sky.

"Hey slick, we're almost there." Reno said from the truck cabin. Cloud rolled his eyes as he sucked in a breath and held his stomach as they hit a rough patch of street.

"Good."

"Reno, there's a wall of monsters." Rude said.

Cloud looked over at Rinoa and nodded towards her. "This might be a good time to call up a summon." The warrior glanced towards the truck cabin. "Reno, slow down. We're gonna blast them out of the way."

"Oh ho. By all means, Cloud." The truck decelerated, the sounds of the monsters ahead still growing louder. They had to save their friends, before these things tore them apart.

"Thanks."

Rinoa focused on the materia, names whispering in her ear. Phoenix, Hades, Ifrit, Shiva and Ramuh. Even more came, giggles from a moogle and grumbles from a giant, the sound of watery roars. A strong voice made its way into her mind, the sorceress raising her brows.

 _'I need to save my friends from an army of monsters.'_

 _ **'Call on me. Tell me where to strike. Release me, if only for a moment.'**_

Rinoa swallowed hard before raising her hand to the cloudy sky, a pressure building up around it from the materia as a glow pulsed from it. Suddenly it released like a gunshot into the sky, and the sorceress opened her eyes wide as she and the rest watched the sky as the grey clouds churned in a circle.

"Who did you summon..." Squall mumbled.

His query was answered with a roar as the clouds gave birth to something made of green strings that descended down towards the Planet, solidifying into a large dragon that took off towards the army of mutants.

"It called itself Neo-Bahamut." She said. Rinoa looked up at the dragon and nodded. "Take them out!"

* * *

Yuffie peeked out of the manhole, then pushed it away as soon as she noticed the coast was clear. Soon a stream of party members appeared out of the darkness of the sewers, the ninja assisting the two children out while Irvine and Zell gave Nanaki an extra boost as they entered the clearing.

"Looks like we're on the north side of Edge, now. This is the air base." Yuffie said.

Reeve scratched his head. "A shame we have no transportation at this time, but I'm sure news of what happened has reached Junon and beyond by now."

"One could hope," Nanaki grumbled.

Selphie and Quistis looked about. "So. We're kinda out in the open here, and that's just as bad as being stuck in the buildings over there."

Irvine nodded. "She's right. Squall and the others are gonna be searchin' for us, too."

They didn't have much time to rest; the skies to the north darkened further and sounds to the south put them on edge. Yuffie looked at Reeve. "Where do we go from here, leader?"

Reeve gave a withering look. "We're going to have to fight one way or another, but...if we can find an adequate place for fortification we might be able to survive this ordeal until we reunite with the others."

"I don't think there's gonna be time for that." Zell said quietly. They looked towards the south, the first trickle of monsters quickly headed their way.

Selphie hopped up and down. "Then let's make a fortification outta bodies!"

Some howling aberration charged across the field and Selphie impaled the creature with ice before it fell to the ground, dead. Another came and Irvine blew its head off. They trickled in, slowly, and Yuffie frowned as she took back her shuriken. "Why aren't they pushin' into us?"

She was answered by a howling like a wind tunnel. Looking to the south something squirmed in the distance, as if hundreds of monsters were rearranging themselves into something gargantuan. It began to slither towards them, the imprint of former human bodies melting away into leathery armor on the worm like entity.

"What...the hell." Zell said, gawking.

Nanaki growled. "The power of Jenova." He instinctively kept his body between the enemy and the two children who hid their faces from the hideous transformation. Laguna and Bughe came to the children's sides protectively.

Laguna gawked. "Man, we're so screwed, aren't we?"

Yuffie growled and hopped in place. "Settin' my materia to fire, 'cause I'm gonna barbecue this thing!" She swung her shuriken about angrily as it charged towards them, then let a powerful fire spell explode in its maw. It did less damage than the ninja would have liked, and she scowled.

Quistis focused on the little yellow orb in her armlet, and soon the entire party sensed some mysterious protection; Nanaki let out a long howl as energy cackled silently around him, the party feeling stronger and faster. Irvine aimed at what looked like an eye and blew it away, the beast thrashing at the loss of some of its sight as he came closer.

A horrible, brackish gas seeped out of its deformed maw that enveloped the group, choking them even as Laguna and Bughe attempted to shield the children from the worst of it without collapsing on them. "Ah...How do I use this?!" Laguna panicked. He held both Marlene and the materia, the little girl holding to his white dress shirt for dear life. "Focus focus focus..." The Estharian president felt it finally, and he directed the esuna into the children one at a time before focusing on the other group members.

A few stragglers charged during the attack, and Nanaki clumsily mauled one despite the gas blinding him. Reeve moved in front of Bughe and took a bite to the arm, Zell bashing it in the skull several times as Laguna's esuna came into effect; the monster eventually let go and collapsed to the ground as the martial artist continued his assault.

A roar issued from somewhere in the distance as they fought the worm monster, Laguna and Bughe attempting to get the children further away from the fight in a futile gesture to keep them safe; nowhere was safe. Yuffie ripped her shuriken out of a monster's head. "What now?!"

She was answered with a bright light beyond the front line of the enemy, and squinted her eyes. When it faded she looked up and noticed a dragon dissolving into lifestream in the distance. Yuffie whooped. "They're here! They're here!" The ninja dodged the worm's tail but kept her cheer; they were okay! "You're gonna get it now, buddy!"

Irvine took another shot at it. "If we can hold out long enough."

"I'm with Yuffie! This thing is gonna get smoked!" Selphie chimed as she hit the monster with an ice spell, she shook her head and sighed; the mental fatigue was setting in finally.

Reeve used the Comet materia he held; he was pleased it actually caused some sort of damage to the hide of the monster as it came in to thrash at Irvine. It came in to attack Nanaki, the beast leaping out of the way and releasing a green mist that caused it to howl in pain; Ultima.

It shuddered a moment before it grew gangly, mantis-like limbs on either side of its belly, six spears of hardened serrated bone ripping through the air. It lowered them on the group in slashing movements, nearly decapitating Nanaki and slashing Zell's chest. Quistis fell back and shot out Beta, causing it to howl; another came down on a distracted Yuffie who was pushing away Irvine before it impaled him. She had enough time to look up as it came down towards her.

"Yuffie!" Selphie screamed.


End file.
